


Strength To Fly

by heartsdesire456



Category: Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Age Difference, Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, Class Differences, Closeted Character, Falling In Love, Family Feels, Inspired by a Movie, M/M, Protective Siblings, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-30
Updated: 2016-01-30
Packaged: 2018-05-17 04:44:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 29,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5854699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heartsdesire456/pseuds/heartsdesire456
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Eggsy's best friend, Roxy, goes away for a business trip and asks him to walk her dog every day, she mentioned that her uncle was house sitting for her. Eggsy never expected his best mate's uncle to change his life so quickly.</p><p>(Inspired by the 2007 film <i>Shelter</i>)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strength To Fly

**Author's Note:**

> I FINALLY WROTE A SHELTER AU!!!
> 
> To start with, NO! You don't have to have ANY IDEA what the movie [Shelter](https://chelsealovesmovies.wordpress.com/2016/01/09/shelter-2007/) is even about, because this fic basically came about because I noticed that all the ways that the class and age dynamics work in Shelter work PERFECTLY for Hartwin! The plot is NOT the same, there's definitely no surfing, lol, and it's everything set in a Kingsman world but without the spies.
> 
> However, if you HAVE seen Shelter, then you will notice some parts are reworkings of exact bits from the movie. You'll pick up on all the little lines and scenes that are directly drawn from the film, which I'm sure you'll like. 
> 
> Either way, I am so happy to have finally wrote a Shelter!AU because that's definitely my favorite Gay Film, probably my favorite Queer Film in general, and it deserves an AU made of it, lol.

Eggsy had been standing around outside the shop for ages, waiting on Roxy to get off work, when he finally spotted her making her way to the door. He ran up and jumped up onto the banister, waiting with a winning smile for her to come out. “You okay, Rox?” he asked, and she rolled his eyes as he slid down the polished brass banister at the rate she came down the steps. He leapt off the end, slinging an arm around her shoulders and winking cheekily at the older gentleman practically dropping a monocle at the sight of Eggsy in his trackies and polo.

“I’m not going to be able to be a lookout tonight,” Roxy said, and Eggsy groaned.

“Rox, you couldn’t have texted me, that? I’ve been waitin’ out here for hours,” he complained. He gave her a look, eyes wide. “I could’ve taken an extra shift for somethin’.”

“Well, I’m sorry,” she said, hooking an arm through his. “I’m going to have to rush home and start packing.”

“Packing? For?” he asked, and she gestured back towards the shop.

“I’m going on an assignment. Me and one of the other tailors, we’re going off to spend a month and a half in Paris. There’s this designer that the owner of the shop knows that’s down a few seamstresses,” she said, making a face. “And of course, since I’m a girl, I’m the one to be lent out, along with the new apprentice.” She glared. “Also a girl.”

Eggsy scoffed. “Chester King is well sexist, ain’t he?” he asked. “I swear, Rox, if it wouldn’t get you fired and you wouldn’t be mad at me for tryin’ to fight your battles for ya, I’d walk back there to that shop,” he gestured behind them, “and I’d tell that prick where he can stick that shite.”

Roxy smiled, shaking her head. “You are a rare breed, Eggsy, that’s for sure.” She shoved him playfully. “Awfully chivalrous for a chav,” she teased and he winked.

“Cheers.” He sighed, adjusting his bag, listening to the spray cans clink. “Well if I ain’t got a lookout, I best just get home, then. No need to get an ASBO and piss Dean off worse than ever.” He looked at her. “When you leavin’? Wanna make sure you ain’t gone and left without a proper goodbye at least.”

She nodded to herself, clearly thinking. “Day after tomorrow, nine sharp.” She grabbed his sleeve quickly. “Oh! Could you do me a huge favor?” she asked, giving him a pleading look. “Can you come over and walk Sherman once a day? I’ve got an uncle that’s gonna housesit for me, and he’s gonna let him out in the garden when he needs to go, but I doubt he’ll be up to running around after an energetic poodle every day for six weeks.”

Eggsy groaned, stopping her with a sudden hug. “You’re leavin’ me for six weeks. Rox, what’m I gonna do without you?!” he cried dramatically, faking sobs. “All alone without my darlin’ Roxy!” he shouted, earning a few strange looks their way. 

Roxy just rolled her eyes and socked him in the arm. “Oh fuck off, Eggsy,” she said, though the grin belied her amusement. 

He darted in and kissed her cheek. “This’s me off, then. See you tomorrow,” he said, turning to jog off to the left while Roxy continued on forward.

~

As soon as Eggsy got through the door, he could hear his mum and Dean fighting in the other bedroom. He looked around the kitchen and sighed heavily when he saw there was nothing cooking or cooked. He opened the refrigerator and saw there wasn’t a lot of food to begin with. He ignored the sounds of them arguing – having long learned to tell when it was fighting and when it was Dean getting violent – and set about scraping up what he could to eat. There was only enough bread left for one cheese sandwich and a piece of toast in the morning, but enough cheese for two, so he put together a cheese sandwich and a plate of cheese. He grabbed the juice bottle and found there wasn’t much, so he grabbed an empty cup to take with him as he headed to his bedroom.

As soon as he shut the door behind him with his hip, Daisy poked her head out of the flaps of a blanket fort she’d built between their beds and smiled. “Eggsy!” she said, and Eggsy smiled at the sight of her face.

“’Lo, Love,” he said, coming over to stop and look down at her. “I got somethin’ to eat. You wanna come out and eat?”

She shook her head and ducked back into her blanket fort. “In here,” she said, and Eggsy sighed. He knew immediately he was gonna be sleeping on the floor with her tonight. However, he dutifully knelt down, careful with the food, and shuffled into her little blanket cave. She slid further back so he could slide in, hunching over as he slid onto the empty pillow. He looked at the upturned torch and grinned at the ingenuity she had for a light source.

“This ain’t half bad, Dais,” he said, offering her the plate with the cheese sandwich. He put his own plate aside and plucked the plastic cup off his plate. He poured what was left of the juice in the cup then sat it beside Daisy’s plate. “There you go, I bet you been hungry a while, huh?” he asked with a solemn smile.

She nodded, tucking into her sandwich with gusto. She ate a full third of the sandwich before putting it down and drinking some from her cup. She looked up at him, only to frown when she watched him picking a few pieces of cheese up. “Eggsy, ain’t you hungry?” she asked, and he shook his head with a convincing grin.

“Nah, I got somethin’ with Roxy earlier. I just wanted some of this lovely cheese when I fixed your sandwich, yeah?” She looked at him for a moment longer before seeming to accept his words and go back to her sandwich.

“You don’t want no juice either?” she asked, and he shook his head.

“I’ll drink some water when I’m finished, I don’t need no more juice after I had some earlier. Juice is good for ya, but too much is bad, remember that,” he said, and she nodded seriously, though he knew damn well ‘too much’ of anything was never gonna be one of their problems.

Later that night, when Dean and his mum had finally stopped fighting loud enough to hear up the road, Eggsy softly sang Daisy to sleep where she lay on the pillow beside him in their little blanket fort. Once he was sure she was out, he settled down facing her and reached out, curling his hand over her little fist, watching her sleep and stroking his thumb over her knuckles while he ignored the gnawing hunger that had gone beyond making his stomach growl and just plain hurt. 

He drifted off to sleep with his eyes on her sleeping face, letting his heart drown out his stomach the one way it never failed to manage.

~

Eggsy woke up to Daisy curled up in his arms, playing with his medal, which tickled and made him giggle slightly. Daisy smiled when she saw he was awake and he crossed his eyes, making her laugh. “What you doin’, Dais?” he asked and she turned the medal over again, looking at the name etched into the back.

“This was your daddy’s necklace, right Eggsy?” she asked and he nodded. She looked at it searchingly. “You’re my daddy, Eggsy,” she said as if making up her mind about something.

Eggsy laughed. “What? No, Dais, I’m your big bruva.” He smiled sadly, stroking a hand over her little curls. “Dean’s your daddy.”

Daisy shook her head. “I don’t like Dean, you’re my daddy,” she repeated. “You’re my daddy, not Dean.”

“Well then,” Eggsy murmured, pushing her hair back from her face. “I guess I am as good as you got,” he allowed with a shrug. He grinned. “Don’t worry, Love, nobody likes Dean,” he said, then sat up, sliding away from her. “Alright, c’mon, you. I’ll see what we got for breakfast before I go off to see Roxy, yeah?”

Daisy took his hand and let him tug her up to her feet, knocking their blanket fort down so he could clear it all up before he left. As he set about trying to scrounge up some food for Daisy, he looked over at her and smiled when all he could see in her face was his mum. She could’ve always ended up looking like Dean, and that would’ve been a pity. Granted, maybe Dean wouldn’t hate her so much if she looked more like him than their mum. Eggsy looked just like her and Dean sure hated him. 

Eggsy set Daisy up with some toast and went to check on his mum, where she was sleeping on the couch. He knelt down beside her and made sure she was really asleep, not knocked out, but she didn’t have any bruises. After last night’s fight, he was glad for that, much. He could smell the booze on her from halfway across the room, though, so he was pretty sure she wasn’t sleeping naturally as much as passed out. He sighed as he carefully tugged the throw off the back of the couch and covered her with it, tucking it in around her legs. He rested a hand on her side for a moment, looking her over as he tried to remember how long it’d been since she’d been like this.

When Eggsy was little, she’d been a great mum. He could remember her being attentive and caring and doing all the things a mum should, and he hated more than anything that Daisy didn’t get to have the same type of mum he did at her age. He never blamed her, though. She did try. After his dad died, she’d struggled a lot. She couldn’t afford things anymore, no matter what she did to try and find work. She couldn’t hold down a lot of jobs because of how hard she struggled with her grief and what work she could find didn’t pay much. Within a few years, they were on the dole and living in council housing, and at first it was alright, most of their neighbors were like them, in the same sort of state, but there were a couple guys who made their living in less than reputable ways. One of them was Dean, and Eggsy never did know what his mum saw in him at the start, but it didn’t take long for Dean to move into their house. Eggsy figured at first, she just didn’t want to be alone anymore, but Dean wasn’t ever nice to her, not one bit.

By the time he’d started hitting her, he’d been hitting Eggsy for a long time, and the threat of hurting him kept her in line. Then when Eggsy finished school, Dean set him to running him and his mates’ drugs for them, and there wasn’t much Eggsy could do to get out of it without worrying about what Dean might do to his mum. It wasn’t until he got picked up by the police and was lucky enough to get just a community order, not jail time, for possession of drugs with the intent to supply that he decided that, as much as he loved his mum more than anything, he couldn’t let Dean ruin his life and land him in prison for good.

Eggsy had tried his best to get out of it all. Soon as he got done doing his compulsory drugs workshops, he’d gone and joined the marines. He figured his dad was one, and maybe he’d find his own way being a soldier. And he had learned a lot of important life skills, and he’d met Roxy, which was by far the best thing to happen to him, but before he could even finish his training and get a chance to see where his life went, Daisy came along. Eggsy had managed to make peace with leaving his mum to fend for herself, because she was a grown woman in the end, but the thought of leaving a baby sister to grow up with nothing but Dean and his mum was one he couldn’t stomach. So once again, he gave up his own future prospects for the good of someone else. 

Only this time, he’d never once regretted it.

Daisy had been the center of Eggsy’s world from the minute he first saw her, and he’d never once regretting giving up his chance to get out of Dean’s control. It hadn’t been so bad. He’d managed to keep Dean from forcing him back into his criminal activities by getting a real job and taking care of Daisy, so that he brought in money and kept Daisy out of Deans’ hair.

As Eggsy went back into the kitchen and saw Daisy finishing off her toast, he was reminded of why exactly he worked at a fucking McDonalds and shared a shoebox of a bedroom with a small child at twenty-seven years old. He’d face anything for Daisy, and giving her at least someone in her corner was worth all the shit he put up with to be able to do that for her. 

Eggsy kissed the top of her head. “C’mon, Dais. I’ve gotta get off to Roxy’s so let’s get you ready and see if Ms. Walker will watch you yeah?”

Daisy pouted up at him. “Can I come with you, Eggsy?”

“Aw, no, Love, I’m sorry but you know how far I go to go to Roxy’s,” he said, giving her an apologetic smile. “Don’t worry. You’ll be alright until I get back,” he comforted and she nodded, only pouting a bit as she was led back to their room to get dressed.

~

When Eggsy got to Roxy’s house, as soon as she opened the door she hugged him. “Hey, Rox,” he said, patting her shoulder.

“Errrr, I can’t believe I’m going away for so long without seeing you,” she complained. She pulled away and started to turn back, only to stop and look up at him. “Oh, my Uncle Harry is housesitting for me, so when you come get Sherman, he’ll most likely be here.” Roxy glanced up the stairs at the bags at the top. “Anyways, I’m going to go finish packing. Go put on the kettle, please,” she said and Eggsy nodded, ducking past her to go through to the kitchen.

When Roxy returned, Eggsy pouted at her. “Month and a half without my best mate’s gonna be miserable, Rox. I hope your boss knows what he’s doin’ to me,” he groused and she chuckled.

“Yes, because Chester King cares about your feelings, Eggsy.” She bumped their shoulders together with a sad smile. “Alright, let’s not sit about feeling sorry for ourselves. What should we do on our last day together for six weeks?” she asked.

Eggsy hummed, tapping his chin. “Wanna watch a movie?” he asked and Roxy nodded.

“Sure, you go pick one,” she instructed reaching for the pantry door. “I’ll just get us something to eat, then.” After the film started, Roxy noticed Eggsy barely eating anything, but she put off mentioning it until she realized he wasn’t even mouthing along to the words like usual. “Alright,” she said, turning to face him fully, tossing her ponytail over her shoulder. “Eggsy, what’s wrong?”

He gave her a sad smile. “Aw, c’mon, Rox, no reason to bother you with my shit-“

“Yes there most certainly is, I’m your best friend,” she said, and he grinned, leaning over to lay his head on her shoulder. She curled an arm around his shoulders. “Alright, Eggsy. Spill,” she commanded.

Eggsy hesitated then pulled his medal out of his collar. “Ya know this is my dad’s right?” he asked, and she nodded.

“Yeah, you mentioned how he was a marine and that’s why you joined up.” She shook him some. “Good thing you did, or else then where would I be?” she asked and he smiled up at her.

“Well, Daisy was messin’ with it and asked about it being my dad’s, and I told her about it, and then…” Eggsy hesitated and smiled some. “And then, Daisy informed me that I’m her daddy,” he said and Roxy snorted in surprise.

“What?” she asked, and he nodded, sitting up straight again.

“Yeah, and when I was like, ‘course not, Dean’s your dad and I’m your big bruva’, she says that since she don’t like Dean, I’m her daddy instead,” Eggsy said, smiling tightly. “I just don’t know how I feel about it.”

“About your sister thinking you’re her dad?” Roxy asked, raising an eyebrow, but he shook his head.

“Nah, she’s five, she knows I’m her bruva, it’s not like she’s confused,” he said. “She just… don’t want Dean to be her dad, and I mean, it’s not like he’s ever been a dad for her.”

Roxy seemed to understand, propping her elbow on the back of the couch as she looked at him with a small smile. “But you have been, essentially, the only male parent she’s got.”

Eggsy nodded. “I guess I just- I don’t mind it so much?” he asked, seeming unsure of his wording. “It’s not like she couldn’t be, apart from her mum being my mum an’ all. You remember, I was twenty-two when she was born. Older than me mum and dad were when I was born,” he pointed out. “Shit, I’m lucky I ain’t got no kids anyways. Most blokes I went to school with, they got kids.” Roxy gave him a strange look he couldn’t understand, so he continued on with a scoff. “Sure as hell ain’t like Daisy’s the only kid Dean’s got. Only one he’s stuck claimin’,” he amended. “Poor Dais, she’s probably got about a dozen siblin’s.”

“Daisy’s lucky she has you,” Roxy said in a more serious tone. “Seriously, Eggsy, I’ve never, in my entire life, known anybody with as big of a heart as you have.” She shook her head. “You were right behind me at the top in training and you just gave it all up because your mother had a baby and you didn’t want her growing up without a good influence. You’re the best big brother Daisy could’ve ever hoped for.”

Eggsy grinned. “I am pretty great, I have to admit.” He preened. “Handsome too!” Roxy rolled her eyes and shoved him, making him laugh. “Nah, it’s not that big of a thing, really. Daisy’s more important than me, yeah? She’s never gonna grow up getting hit and mixed up in drugs or any of that shit Dean’s done to me. I’ve gotta give her what I never got and help her make better grades than I did and grow up all posh and educated like you,” he said, winking. “Who knows, maybe she’ll even be a tailor one day.”

Roxy rolled her eyes. “Ah yes, the glamorous job being made to go assist someone simply because you’re the expendable female at the shop.”

“Oh, well, of course that’ll have to be well fixed before Dais can work there, obviously,” he said in a grand tone. “‘Sides, Chester King is already a dried up mummy, can’t live much longer, can he? By then you’ll be the owner and Dais’ll get treated with the right sort of respect.” He touched his chest. “I’ll have made manager by then, and have really committed my life to the corporate overlords at McDonalds, but eh, it’s better than gettin’ stabbed in a drug deal, or resorting to selling my services to the desperate old posh birds who ain’t gettin’ none from their old arse husbands-“

“Oh God, Eggsy, stop,” Roxy groaned, slapping a hand over her face. “I really don’t want to think about that-“

“Who knows, maybe ol’ Chester King’s got a wife who likes pretty boys. At his age, she probably ain’t felt the touch of a man in decades-“

“Ew, Eggsy!” Roxy cried, smacking him with a pillow until he gave up. “God, thanks, thanks for that. Nightmare for days,” she sighed dramatically.

Eggsy winked and clicked his tongue. “Welcome, Rox, as always.”

“Oh fuck off, Eggsy.”

~

Eggsy was pretty sad to be going to Roxy’s house knowing she wasn’t there. He’d seen Roxy most every day for the past five years. Sure, there were a few days he didn’t see her, but at least five days a week he at least swung by to chat with her on her lunch break at work. And now he was gonna be without her for _six weeks_. He figured poor Sherman would be even sadder than him, though, so he didn’t hesitate to let himself into Roxy’s house so he could find Sherman and take him for a walk.

He had forgotten, however, that Roxy’s uncle was housesitting for her.

“Sherman? Where you at, boy?” he called, walking down the hall, only to have a throat cleared on the stairs above. He froze and carefully backed up, only to see a man standing there with his arms crossed.

“And how, exactly, did you get in?” a very posh voice asked, and Eggsy winced, rubbing at the back of his neck.

“Erm, sorry, I forgot you was here.” He held up the key that Roxy kept under the flower pot by the door. “Spare key.”

The man hummed, and seemed to decide Eggsy wasn’t a housebreaker going by the way he descended the stairs. “I see. Roxanne did say a boy would be coming to walk her dog, but I expected-“

“Another posh bloke like her?” Eggsy tried, though his voice slipped some when the man stepped into the light of the hall and Eggsy could see his _face_. He was well handsome, that was for damn sure.

“No, I was going to say I expected ‘a boy’ meant a child,” he corrected, looking at Eggsy. “You look around the same age as she is.”

Eggsy smirked. “Well by ‘uncle Harry’ I expected some elderly bloke, and that ain’t you, now is it?” he asked, offering his hand. “I’m Eggsy, Roxy’s best mate,” he greeted.

Uncle Harry took his hand, shaking it firmly with an amused smile. “Harry Hart, Roxy’s uncle.”

“I am sorry ‘bout just letting myself in,” Eggsy said more earnestly. “Promise I’m not gonna rob the place or anything.”

Harry shrugged. “Well if Roxy let you have a spare key, obviously she trusts you.” He looked down the hall. “However, walking that blasted dog may be a bit more difficult than planned. I swear, every time I come anywhere near it, the little shit runs off,” he said bluntly, shocking Eggsy with his language and tone.

“Sherman? Friendliest poodle ever?” he asked incredulously.

Harry rolled his eyes. “You know, I had a dog for ages, never had a problem with it, but Roxy’s dog absolutely hates me.”

Eggsy scoffed, walking towards the living room. “Now that just ain’t right.” He walked over to the couch and crawled onto it, looking over the back and, sure enough, Sherman was just sitting there. “What’re you doin’ hiding back there, silly?” he asked, reaching over to pet Sherman, who started wagging his tail, leaning into the attention. “Awww, now you know there ain’t no reason to be scared of Roxy’s uncle. C’mon, Sherman, let’s go for walks, yeah?” he asked tenderly, rubbing Sherman’s neck. Sherman definitely recognized ‘walk’ because he stood up and jumped around a few times. “That’s a good boy, c’mon,” Eggsy said, and he left Sherman to leave on his own terms as he went to the hall closet to get Sherman’s lead. 

Harry watched him dubiously, only to stare in mild surprise when Sherman came trotting along, waiting patiently for Eggsy to clip on his lead. “How on earth is it that dog likes you but hates me?” he asked and Eggsy winked.

“Part of my charm, I guess. Dogs and children love me, old posh blokes think I’m breakin’ in,” he teased and Harry chortled. Eggsy rubbed Sherman’s head, then gave Harry a look. “Wanna come with us, then? Let Sherman get used to ya?”

Harry smiled and shook his head politely. “No, I think I’ll let you and Sherman enjoy your walk today. Maybe some other day,” he added and Eggsy just nodded.

“Sure, sure.” He led Sherman towards the door and threw up a hand. “Be back in a bit, then.”

“See you in a bit,” Harry replied to Eggsy as he and Sherman slipped out the door.

~

After the first couple of times Eggsy walked Sherman, he finally convinced Harry to walk with them. He was amused to see how Sherman and Harry eyed each other with distrust constantly. “Why don’t he like you?” Eggsy asked Harry, walking a bit faster to keep up with Harry’s long strides as they made their way towards the park Sherman usually took his walks at.

Harry sniffed. “I honestly have no idea,” he said, glaring at Sherman, who gave him just as ugly of a look as a poodle could manage, Eggsy reckoned. “I had a dog for fifteen years. Dogs like me, or so I’ve always thought.”

Eggsy hummed. “Well, what was your dog like? Maybe Sherman’s just got a different taste in people,” he suggested. 

“Well,” Harry mused, clearly humoring Eggsy. “Mr. Pickle was a little terrier-“

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, stop.” Eggsy held up a hand. “You mean to tell me you named your dog _Mr. Pickle_?” he demanded, giving him a look that suggested he’d just admitted to enjoying disco. “Well there you go, Guv, you named your fuckin’ dog Mr. Pickle.” He scoffed. “Sherman probably can sense that you’re clearly barkin’,” he said and Harry actually let out a surprised little chuckle.

“Oh what? Did you expect a boring, serviceable name like ‘Sherman’?” he asked, and Eggsy hesitated, trying to find the words to say, ‘of course, you’re a posh git’ without actually being rude. Harry seemed to understand from his silence what he thought on the matter, because he just gave Eggsy a secretive little smirk that did absolutely nothing to make Eggsy stop noticing how nice his eyes were. “You’re friends with Roxy, do you really think she’s the sole exception to snobbery among the lot of us?”

“Well, if you mean ‘us’ as in ‘posh fuckers with silver spoons up your arses’, then sort of, yeah,” he said bluntly. “No disrespect, Harry, but I’ve met the people Roxy’s always stuck dealing with, and they’re all fuckin’ arseholes.” He looked at him with an apologetic shrug. “Just cause you’re bein’ nice to me now doesn’t mean I know you from any of the rest of them that look at me like something Roxy stepped it and can’t get off her shoe.”

Harry looked at him in surprise, of the amused sort, and just smiled, linking his hands behind his back as they walked. “You clearly haven’t met Roxy’s parents, then. You’d see where she gets it from, at least.”

Eggsy blushed, ducking his head. “Nah, never met any of Roxy’s family. Don’t know nothin’ about them. You’re the first one I’ve even heard of.”

“And this is the first I’ve heard of you,” Harry admitted. “Roxy is very good at separating her family life from her life here.” He had a look that Eggsy could only imagine was pride in his eyes as he spoke of Roxy. “It’s partially to keep people from basing their assessment of her on her family, and mostly because she doesn’t want their help. She’s very determined to prove herself, you know,” he clarified. “She and her family all get on splendidly, of course, but she is very independent.”

Eggsy grinned. “Yeah, that’s Rox, alright.” He winked. “Never met a bigger bad arse in me life.”

“How did you meet?” Harry asked curiously. “If you don’t mind me asking.”

Eggsy hesitated for a moment before deciding ‘what the hell?’ and trusting Harry based on what he knew so far. He pulled out his father’s medal, holding it by the chain. “Roxy and I both joined the marines at the same time years ago,” he said, and Harry eyed his medal in surprise.

“You were deployed with her in the marines?” he asked, and Eggsy sighed, shaking his head.

“Nah, this is my dad’s medal,” he said, looking down at it with a sad smile. “He died when I was real small. I joined up same time as Rox and we trained together, but I had to quit before training finished,” he said, grimacing dramatically. “Family stuff,” he muttered. “But, Rox and me, we kept in touch. She did her service and got the job at the tailor shop, but we stayed friends.” Eggsy smiled a bit. “Really, bout the only friend I’ve got I can count on. She ain’t never judged me or nothin’ like that. She knows all bout me, almost my every secret and all, but she ain’t never once treated me like I’m less for any of it.” Eggsy smiled up at Harry. “She’s a proper mate, ya know? The ones you stick wiv through everythin’ and never turn your back on.” He nodded to Sherman. “There’s a reason she lets me come and go in her house. She trusts me and I love her for it, cause in my life, trust ain’t something you get easy. You got a real great niece, Harry. I ain’t jokin’.”

Harry hummed, looking amused. “You sure you’re not more than just her best friend, extolling her virtues like that?” he joked and Eggsy scoffed, laughing at the ridiculousness.

“Oh fuck, no.” He smiled fondly. “She’s like family to me. I dunno about her, but she don’t ever talk about her family, so I guess she feels similar.” 

Harry raised an eyebrow. “Oh really?” He looked forward again. “Has she at least mentioned she’s adopted?”

Eggsy turned to him in surprise. “Roxy’s adopted? I had no idea,” he mused.

Harry eyed him curiously. “Well now, you really don’t know anything about her family? I’m not her biological uncle,” he said, gesturing to himself. “Hell, I’m not even technically her adoptive uncle, I’m more a godfather than anything.” Eggsy raised an eyebrow and Harry gestured with a hand. “Roxy ever mentioned someone named ‘Percy’?” he asked and Eggsy shook his head. “One of my oldest friends, James, is married to a man named Percy Morton.”

Eggsy’s jaw dropped. “Rox has two dads?! I never fuckin’ knew it. What the fuck? She knows all ‘bout my family shit and never even told me she’s got two dads.” He shook his head. “I hope she doesn’t think I’d have reacted badly or somethin’. I sure as hell ain’t like that.”

Harry chuckled. “It’s probably not so much not telling you that specifically as much as not wanting to blend family and friends. She never, ever mentions them anywhere near work. The sort she works with would probably shit themselves over the thought of the adopted child of a pair of homosexuals doing their fittings,” he added and Eggsy shrugged, able to cede that he had a fair point.

“God, I hate her boss,” Eggsy blurted out, unable to help it. “You know he sent her off on this trip cause she’s a fuckin’ woman. What a sexist bastard. Swear on my life, if it was my baby sister gettin’ treated the way he treats Roxy, I’d have gone to prison by now.”

Harry gave him an amused grin. “You know, you’re a very fascinating young man, Eggsy. I can’t say I’ve ever known someone to actually say what we’re all thinking about Chester King.” He nodded politely. “He’s an utter tit, if you ask me. Misogynist, racist, homophobic, and any other sort of discriminatory word you can think of. A real snob.”

Eggsy shrugged. “Yeah, well, what else can you expect from Saville Row?” he asked, and Harry bowed his head in deference to Eggsy’s words.

~

Eggsy was sure Harry would be sleeping in on a Sunday morning, so he let himself in to get Sherman only to find Harry and Sherman in the kitchen together, clearly having a disagreement. Sherman was sitting in front of the refrigerator and Harry seemed to be trying his best to push, bribe, or scare the dog into moving so he could get into it to no avail. Eggsy watched with a raised eyebrow as Harry crossed his arms and sniffed pretentiously before giving the dog a stern look, as if that might do it. 

“What the fuck, Harry?” Eggsy asked, and Harry froze, shoulders going stiff as his ears went red. He slowly turned his eyes to Eggsy, who just rolled his eyes. “Honestly,” he said, then clicked his fingers. “Sherman,” he said and Sherman immediately stood and trotted to his side, tail wagging excitedly. 

Harry gave him a look that spoke volumes – mostly volumes of curses, but volumes – and he huffed as he opened the refrigerator to get to the milk. “That bloody dog. No fucking idea why he hates me,” Harry muttered and Eggsy rolled his eyes.

“Oh yes, no idea at all,” he droned, rubbing Sherman’s head. “You two are like a pair of children butting heads is all.” He patted his leg. “C’mon, let’s go for a walk yeah.” Sherman scrambled towards the hall and Eggsy grinned at Harry. “You wanna join us?” he asked, and Harry scoffed.

“I would rather not, if you don’t mind. I’d be far too likely to shout at that damned dog in public than anything, and then everyone in the neighborhood will hate me,” he said and Eggsy chuckled. Harry poured some milk into his tea as he spoke. “However, if you’ve the time, I’ll have breakfast waiting on you when you and Sherman return.”

Eggsy gave him a surprised smile. “That’d be ace, Guv, but you ain’t gotta-“

“Nonsense,” Harry dismissed. “Cooking breakfast for one is far less enjoyable than breakfast for two, I can assure you,” he said, and Eggsy could hear a hint of bitterness in his tone, but he chose to let it go.

He nodded. “We’ll be back soon, then. Cheers,” he said, giving Harry a wave before heading out with Sherman. 

When he did return, he let Sherman out into the back garden and headed to the kitchen, where he found Harry finishing up a full breakfast. “Wow, you didn’t have to go all out, Harry,” he said, hopping up onto the counter beside where Harry was serving up food to each plate. “Hell, some toast and jam would’ve left me impressed,” he joked.

Harry gave him a look at sitting on the counter until he slid back off. “Better,” he said, then picked up the two plates in his hands. “If you could grab the tea tray, please,” he said, and Eggsy grinned as he did what Harry asked, following him.

“Sitting at the dining table, then? How posh old bloke of you,” he teased, helping Harry out by pouring the tea before sitting at his place on the left with Harry at the head of the table. 

“Unlike you and Roxy, eating in front of the television lost its appeal ages ago for me.”

After tucking in and inhaling half his food because _wow_ Harry could cook, he glanced up to see Harry watching him with a very strange light in his eyes that Eggsy couldn’t really identify. “So,” he asked, sipping his tea before following. “I been meaning to ask something.” Eggsy pushed a bit of egg around before speaking again. “Did you get fired or somthin’?” he asked and Harry paused, putting his cup down before turning to Eggsy.

“What on earth made you think that?” he asked, looking curious more than annoyed or offended, which Eggsy figured was a good thing.

He shrugged. “What else reason is there for you to be able or willing to housesit for somebody? Your age and type, you’d have a pretty steady job, by my reckoning, and your own house to live in. People who housesit usually need somewhere to sleep while they’re between places. Way I see it, you must’ve lost your job and for some reason, that means you gotta move, so you’re stayin’ here in the meantime.”

Harry hummed, resting his elbows on the table and folding his hands together to rest his chin on. “You’re a very observant young man,” he commented. He didn’t speak for a moment, choosing instead to hold eyes with Eggsy. Eggsy wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but for whatever reason, he must’ve found it, because he spoke soon after. “I did have to move, that much is true. However, I did not lose my job, so I’m afraid you are only half correct.” He smiled sadly. “Ended a relationship instead. Very messy situation.”

Eggsy nearly choked on a bite of sausage. “Fuck, I didn’t even think of that. Sorry, Harry, I’m a horrible person,” he apologized.

Harry scoffed. “No, my ex is a horrible person, Eggsy, you’d have to be really shit to make that list,” he said bluntly. “It’s no bother. I wouldn’t have offered it up if I was that upset still.” 

“Sooo, it weren’t that serious, then?” Eggsy asked carefully.

“Oh no,” Harry corrected. “It was a serious relationship on my part, and I thought he felt the same, right up until I got home and found the prick in the shower with the cleaning lady,” he openly shared. “I’m pretty sure I paid her to scrub the floors, not my partner’s naked chest, but there you have it.”

Eggsy half-laughed, half-groaned. “Oh mate, that’s fuckin’ shit. I hope you kicked his arse out,” he said, and Harry huffed, making an annoyed face.

“Sadly, no. It was his house we were living in, so I had to pack my bags and get the fuck out. I stayed several weeks at a hotel, but when Roxy asked me to housesit for her, I thought it might be a good chance to get used to get some peace and quiet to work for a while.”

Eggsy nodded. “What do you do, then? You seem to be here at the most random times of day, so all the jobs I’d imagined are out the window.”

Harry smiled in amusement. “Oh? What all did you suspect me of doing for a living?”

Eggsy ticked them off on his finger, grinning brightly. “Barrister, banker, professor, businessman, or James Bond.”

“You think James Bond is a bitter, old homosexual living in his niece’s house for a month?” Harry asked skeptically.

Eggsy shrugged. “Didn’t know you were into men, you seem to be in pretty good shape, and Daniel Craig is older than you, so why not?”

Harry chuckled. “Lovely suggestions, but actually the truth is far less impressive.” He paused dramatically, making Eggsy give him a look before he continued. “I’m a writer.”

Eggsy blinked. “A writer? Like books?”

“No, instruction manuals,” Harry said flatly. “Of course books. What else would I write?”

Eggsy shrugged. “Could work for the papers,” he suggested. “For all I know, you might be in Rupert Murdoch’s back pocket, comin’ from money like you do.”

Harry raised an eyebrow in surprise. “My, you are full of surprises.” He chuckled. “And how do you reckon I come from money? Couldn’t I have earned my living?”

Eggsy scoffed. “Not with your mannerisms and shit, Harry. You can practically smell the old money on ya.”

“Damn, I really must change aftershaves then,” Harry said so dryly Eggsy couldn’t help a surprised burst of laughter. Harry smiled as he watched Eggsy collecting himself, and shook his head, glancing down at his plate. “And what about you, then? I’m a middle aged writer between houses, but what’s your story?” he asked politely.

Eggsy got a bit quiet, then shrugged. “Ain’t much to it, really. Got in a bad situation, got out of it joinin’ the marines, then I had to leave the marines and went right back into the shit I’d gotten out of, only this time I ain’t gonna end up in jail.”

Harry eyed him curiously. “Why did you have to leave the marines if that was your way to a better life? If you don’t mind me asking, of course. Feel free to tell me to mind my own business at any point,” he added quickly.

Eggsy hesitated only a moment before smiling sadly. “My mum… she tries, she really does, but she ain’t been in a good way ever since me dad died twenty years ago, yeah? So when she had a baby, I had to leave and go back.” He shook his head. “I grew up with a good mum when I was real small, and for a bit after Dad died, she was still a pretty good mum, but she’s just not able to be what my sister needs.”

“Ah yes, you did mention a sister,” Harry commented, and Eggsy smiled, his whole face lighting up.

“Daisy, yeah. Mate, I swear on me life, there ain’t nothin’ in this world better than her. I ain’t never regretted givin’ up my way out cause Dais is everythin’.” He bit his lip, shaking his head with a fond look. “Everythin’ I do, it’s for her, you know? She loves Roxy, too. She’s five and thinks Roxy is the coolest girl ever, and she reminds me a lot of Roxy. Real smart, she can read, and she loves animals. She thinks Sherman’s the coolest dog because he’s Roxy’s dog, you know,” he added, looking up at Harry, only to frown some when he saw the strange expression on Harry’s face. “What?”

Harry shook his head minutely. “You’re just a very interesting person, Eggsy. I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone like you,” he said in a softer, warmer tone than before.

Eggsy ignored the wave of butterflies he felt and winked to help cover it up. “Course not, there ain’t nobody else like me out there,” he said, though his bravado did very little to stop the traitorous twistings and turnings in his belly at the look on Harry’s face.

Eggsy really did not want to deal with what his body was trying to tell him.

~

Eggsy was late walking Sherman, having had to work all day, so he expected Harry to be ready to be rid of him once he and Sherman returned, but instead he found Harry standing at the bottom of the stairs when he let Sherman back in the house, clearly waiting on him. “You need somethin’, Harry?” he asked, and Harry stole a pat of Sherman’s head when he ran past, smiling when the dog wasn’t quick enough to escape.

“Actually, I was rather hoping you’d do me a favor,” Harry said, reaching into the hall closet to grab his umbrella. “You see, I’d made plans to meet with my editor over dinner, but she cancelled the last minute, so I’m starving and have nothing cooking, but I really hate going to restaurants alone.” He gave Eggsy an inquiring tilt of his head and Eggsy frowned.

“What’s the favor then?” he asked, confused.

Harry rolled his eyes. “Come have dinner with me so I don’t feel like everybody else is staring at me eating alone,” he clarified.

Eggsy ducked his head, fighting the wave of heat as he flushed with both shame and the refusal to feel shame. “I ain’t got no money on me, Harry, so I can’t.”

“Nonsense,” Harry dismissed. “Of course I’ll buy your dinner, I’m the one who asked you to join me.”

Eggsy looked up, raising an eyebrow. “You know, in my experience, blokes only buy someone’s dinner if they’re getting some later, and I like you an’ all, but I don’t know you like that,” he said, winking at Harry playfully.

Harry chuckled and shook his head. “Vulgar little shit,” he said, and Eggsy shrugged.

“Just tellin’ it like it is, Bruv.”

“Noted, but no, I do not expect sexual favors in exchange for a fucking meal,” Harry said flatly, making Eggsy grin.

“Well in that case, I’m not gonna turn down free food,” he agreed. “What’d you have in mind?”

Harry shrugged, taking the keys from the table as he directed Eggsy to turn around and head out the door. “Haven’t the foggiest. Something not too involved, preferably, and within walking distance.”

“I got it,” he said, nodding up the street. “There’s a pub up the way that has the best steak pie you’ll ever have in your life, I swear on me life.”

“Oh really?” Harry asked. “That’s high praise.”

Eggsy nodded seriously. “Roxy nearly cried first time she had it. It’s like a religious experience and I ain’t never even seen the inside of a church,” he said and Harry gave him an amused grin.

“I’ll have to test this out, then.”

When their food finally came, Eggsy watched Harry closely as he took his first bite, only to smirk when Harry’s eyes widened in surprise. “Good, ain’t it?” he asked and Harry nodded.

After swallowing, he straightened his glasses. “Honestly, Eggsy, this is really good,” he said, smiling. “I genuinely didn’t believe you, but this may actually be the best I’ve ever had.”

Eggsy snickered. “Yeah, that’s what they all say to me,” he said with a cheeky wink, earning an eye roll. Eggsy grinned. “Nah, really, though, this place is nice when you just wanna get a pint with your mate and have somethin’ warm in your belly as well.”

Harry nodded, glancing around. “I didn’t actually know there was a proper pub in this neighborhood. Where I lived before, all there was nearby were those ultra-modern places with white furniture and drinks that cost more than any alcohol ever should.” He took a sip of his Guinness and sighed as he put it back down. “I suddenly feel twenty-five years younger at least,” he mused and Eggsy raised an eyebrow at him.

“How damn early did you start drinkin’, Mate?” Eggsy asked with a frown.

Harry raised an eyebrow, leaning back in his seat some. “How old do you think I am?”

Eggsy shrugged. “I dunno. Thirty five? Thirty eight?” he mused and Harry smiled, ducking his head with a small shake.

“You’re going to make me blush,” he said as he looked back up, meeting Eggsy’s eyes. He sat for a moment and then grinned. “I’m nearly forty-five years old-“

“Shut up!” Eggsy said in shock. “You’re jokin’.”

“I assure you, I’m not,” Harry said with a minute shake of his head. “Two months from forty-five. Twenty-five years ago I’d have been nearly twenty.”

Eggsy scoffed. “Fuck, Harry, and I thought I looked good for my age. My mum doesn’t look that much older than me and she’s near your age, but she’s one of those pretty ones, you know? Never do look as rough as their life’s been and all.”

Harry grimaced. “Oh my, your _mother_ is nearly my age? Nearly, you say?”

Eggsy squared his shoulders, apprehension growing. “Ain’t nothin’ that odd, really, havin’ a kid real young. Not where I come from. At least my mum and dad loved each other and got married and shit after I was born. Things is different for us,” he defended.

“Eggsy, I promise, I was not judging your mother,” Harry said quickly and sincerely. “I was saying I feel old, not that your mother is abnormally young.”

Eggsy exhaled, ducking his head bashfully. “Sorry, Harry,” he mumbled. He glanced up with a shy smile. “It ain’t you. I’m used to people judgin’ us from where I live.” He hesitated. “I mean, some of it’s definitely warranted, I mean, my stepdad is a fuckin’ criminal, so he deserves it, but not my mum.”

Harry eyed him curiously. “Your stepfather is a criminal? Actually?”

“Oh yeah,” Eggsy said, shaking his head. “Fuckin’ hate him. I thought about killin’ him, but I can’t do much good for my mum and sister in prison.” Harry chuckled, only to trail off when Eggsy didn’t laugh. 

“Wait, you _really_ thought of killing him?” he all but whispered, looking surprised.

Eggsy raised an eyebrow. “You ain’t never met Dean Baker, Bruv. Swear on my life, the man’s a monster. The only useful thing ever to come from his existence is my baby sister, and she don’t like him and he don’t like her, so I ain’t givin’ him the credit for her.” He huffed. “I’m just waitin’ on the day he starts in on her, too. Now _that’s_ when I’ll go to prison and it be worth it.”

Harry smiled a bit sadly and gestured with his fork. “Your sister. You said she’s how old?” he asked. “Daisy, right?”

Eggsy nodded, perking up. “Yeah, she’s five. Adorable little thing.” He beamed. “She’s really the best. Got this curly blond hair, and big blue eyes, and I told you before how smart she is to be five, yeah?” Eggsy nodded to him. “What ‘bout you? Got any brothers or sisters?”

“No, not at all,” Harry said. “No family whatsoever, actually,” he admitted. “Roxanne and her parents are the closest I have to family. I was never one for children, so I never expressed a desire to adopt any myself, and never had a partner who would’ve wanted them anyways.”

Eggsy nodded. “Mate, I ain’t never met nobody I wanna have babies with. I love children, don’t get me wrong,” he said quickly. “But I did my time minding a baby with Daisy. She’s as much of a ‘daughter’ as I ever plan on havin’, that’s for sure.” He chuckled dryly. “I was tellin’ Rox before she left how I’m lucky I made it this far without any kids. All my mates I went to school with got kids.”

Harry hummed. “Well, at your age, that’s about when a lot of people decide to start a family. It’s not that surprising.”

Eggsy sighed. “And here I am. Twenty-seven years old, live with my mum and bastard stepfather, work at fuckin’ McDonalds to provide for my five year old sister, and my best bet for the future is to make manager and get a pay raise and, after a few years savin’ up, maybe I can convince my mum to let me rent us a new flat in a new part of town so she can get away from her criminal husband.” He shook his head. “Maybe I should’ve stuck with a hobby and seen how that worked out. Maybe I’d have made a break by now.”

“Oh? And what were your hobbies you didn’t stick with?” Harry asked, looking genuinely curious.

Eggsy blushed some. “Alright, so, don’t laugh, but I was a gymnast.” Harry smiled and gestured for him to continue, making Eggsy roll his eyes. “I was real rambunctious, you know, as a little kid, so my parents started me in gymnastics. I was actually really good. The other thing I was really good at is drawing and painting.” 

Harry perked up. “Oh? You’re an artist?”

“Was,” Eggsy said quickly. “I just go out and do some graffiti with my mates these days. Ain’t no use drawing or painting when I don’t have the free time for something creative.”

“Nonsense,” Harry dismissed. “I made a career out of creativity. You could too, if you’re actually good.” He chortled. “Hell, even if you’re not, you stand a fair chance. Have you seen some of the shit that people like these days? I could write the worst novel of my career and it’d probably sell as long as it’s a fucking coming of age story.” He nodded to Eggsy. “You could probably spray paint a bit of wood a single color and sell it for thousands if the right person saw it first and talked it up.”

Eggsy smirked. “Well shit, mate, if you know any art people willin’ to split the profit for talking up something, I’ll paint whatever the fuckin’ want.”

Harry smiled at him, looking closely at his eyes in a way that made Eggsy feel a bit warm in the cheeks – he hoped it was from the drinks he’d had – but he didn’t look away; Harry’s eyes were too nice to give up looking into them. “You know, I really would love to see something you’ve drawn sometime, Eggsy. Surely you’ve got something lying around.

Eggsy thought back to the notebook full of scribbles he had under his bed and smiled secretively. “Might do,” he muttered, already wondering what Harry might think of his sketches of sleeping Daisy, or of Sherman with a ball in his mouth. He smirked suddenly, wiggling his eyebrows at Harry. “Only after I go read one of your books, though,” he said and Harry’s lips quirked in amusement.

“I’m more surprised you’ve resisted the curiosity this far.” 

Eggsy winked. “Give me a week an’ I’ll tell you all about how bad you suck,” he teased, earning a soft chuckle from Harry for his efforts.

~

Eggsy’s first move when Harry let him in was to walk over to the table in the front hall, put his bag on it, fish out his notebook full of sketches, and shove them at Harry. “Mate, you fuckin’ earned it,” he said, looking at him with wonder in his eyes. “Holy fuck, your _writing_!” he gushed, grabbing at the back of his head in order to not flail. “Holy shit, Harry, I ain’t cried that hard in years! Jesus, I think you deserve whatever the book equivalent of a BAFTA is, cause fuck me, that was incredible.”

Harry raised an eyebrow behind his glasses. “I take it you enjoyed one of my novels?” he asked casually and Eggsy scoffed, turning to give him a glare.

“Mate, I read _At Sunset Forever_ without putting it down to even take a piss. I spent a day and a half doing everything one-handed and not sleeping, cause I had to know if Miranda and Caroline got together in the end. I was half ready to come over here and strangle the life out of you if Miranda went back to her shit fiancé,” he stressed. He looked up at Harry in wonder. “Goddamn genius, you are. Honestly, Harry. You should introduce yourself with, ‘Hi, I’m Harry Hart, and I write the most emotionally gripping novels you’ll ever read in your whole fuckin’ life’!” 

Harry blushed a bit under his praise. “Really, Eggsy. It’s not that good.”

“Shut your mouth right now,” Eggsy said in playful seriousness. “I’m pretty sure the sun was brighter and the sky was clearer just on account of the emotional high I’m on, Harry. Honestly. How does a gay man write two women in love that beautifully?” he added, frowning in confusion.

Harry snorted softly, rolling his eyes. “Love is love, Eggsy. It isn’t any different because of who you love.” He gestured towards the kitchen. “However, before we get into discussing lesbians, perhaps Sherman should have his walk.”

Eggsy grimaced. “Shit, yeah, God, I’m the worst friend ever. Roxy trusted me to look after her dog, not her uncle.” He winked over his shoulder as he started off. “‘S your fault, Harry. You’re too damn interesting to ignore.”

~

Once Eggsy had gone, Harry, still riding a bit of a wave of flattery over how highly Eggsy had praised him, wasted no time sitting down in the living room with a cup of tea and the notebook with scribbles on the front that Eggsy had handed him unceremoniously. It was hard to move on from the beautiful image of Eggsy’s bright, wide green eyes and cheeks ruddy with excitement as he extolled Harry’s talent at story crafting. He tried not to let it get to his head, but if he was honest, he’d been a mess of nerves over how Eggsy would receive his novel, whichever one he found to read, and knowing that one of Harry’s least popular books was able to inflame such passion in Eggsy brought such a deep, warm rush of joy to Harry’s heart. 

He had no idea what it was about Eggsy that had bewitched him so, but something about the boy was intriguing. He was nothing like anyone Harry had ever befriended, and yet that very fact was what kept Harry drawn to him. He was so strong, judging on what Harry had learned – and read between the lines – from Eggsy’s stories about his life, and seemed to have a good heart no matter what his past transgressions suggested.

It didn’t hurt, of course, that Eggsy was possibly the most beautiful man he’d ever seen in his life. The moment those eyes had turned on him, it had been like being punched in the stomach, all the air left his lungs so quickly.

Harry shook himself and looked at the notebook. It was nothing special, just a simple spiral notebook, but the edges showed signs of wear from being opened and closed so much. When he flipped open the cover, on the inside cover there was a big scribble in block letters that read “DAISY” with a backwards S, suggesting Daisy had gotten a hold of the notebook when she was first learning her letters. It made him smile to see the little flower drawn beneath it in yellow crayon – clearly not Eggsy’s work – before he turned over the first page and found a highly detailed and very beautiful drawing of the front of the tailors where Roxy worked. He could even see someone inside at the counter, though the face was just a hatch-work of shadows, no details.

As he flipped further, he discovered that, while he’d assumed Eggsy’s sketches would be decent cartoons or something, it was actually full of some of the most beautiful (and heartbreaking) sketches he’d ever seen. Most of the sketches were stylized, not realistic, but there was one drawing of a little girls sleeping face that was so hyper realistic he had to touch the page to remind himself it wasn’t a photograph. Throughout the book, there were drawings of random things that were clearly things Eggsy had seen, as well as some imagined such as dragons or fairies. There were a few very impressive and somewhat tantalizing sketches of male bodies that were clearly practices in understanding musculature. 

There was one sketch that took up an entire page that, for the life of him, Harry couldn’t stop going back to. It was a woman. She wasn’t drawn in the same photo realistic style, but rather the shadows and lines in her face seemed exaggerated, and yet somehow Eggsy had captured a smile on her lips and a light in her eyes – in a sketch – that made it clear that the woman was genuinely happy. The resemblance to Eggsy told him it was probably Eggsy’s mother, and in his drawing of his mother, there were stories for each mark the pencil left. Every line in her face he made more stark told of how worn she must look to him, or did at the time. The intricate details of her eyes more so than anything else told him that Eggsy intended to make her happiness look real. It was heartbreaking to say that the twist of her lips told of a different sort of smile. It was as though he had drawn his mother as she was and added happiness to her eyes to try and heal her pain. It was obvious with every inch of her page-sized face that Eggsy put all of his love for his mother into trying to make her happy, even on paper, which suggested she was never as happy in real life as he drew her to be. The obvious pain that Eggsy must feel to see the woman who raised him in such a light that he had to force happiness into a drawing of her made Harry’s chest tighten and his breath catch. 

The effort put into making his mother smile spoke volumes of the way Eggsy lived every single day, and it broke Harry’s heart to even think of it. 

~

When Eggsy returned, rather than go straight away into gushing at Harry again, especially given how oddly contemplative Harry looked, he suggested they order a takeaway and he dug out Roxy’s booze stash – that Harry hadn’t found yet – and they ended up sitting on the living room floor – Eggsy’s idea – eating noodles and watching some mindless comedy that Roxy had on DVD while drinking some of her best scotch.

“Roxy’s gonna kill us,” Eggsy confided in Harry after they’d shoved the takeaway boxes onto the side table and got more comfy with couch pillows behind them and so they could find something else to watch while they got progressively closer to pissed on her expensive alcohol.

Harry just grinned. “I’ll buy her more before she ever knows it’s been drunk,” he dismissed, pouring himself a bit more. “At least she knows good scotch,” he noted and Eggsy nodded as he tipped his glass towards Harry.

“Best taste in most things, if we’re honest.” He sighed heavily. “If ever there was an angel, it’d be Rox, you know?” he mused, leaning his head onto the sofa behind them to look up at Harry. “She’s all pretty and small and bad arse. She’d kick the shit out of some demons or whatever.”

“That she would,” Harry agreed with an amused twist to his lips. He tilted his head, looking down at Eggsy. “You know who else is very pretty?” Eggsy frowned in confusion and Harry leaned back to grab Eggsy’s sketch book off the table.

Eggsy groaned. “Oh God, no, not that shite-“

“Oh fuck off,” Harry argued in a mild tone. “You’re incredibly talented, Eggsy,” he said, flipping through until he found the drawing of Eggsy’s mother. He propped it on his raised knee, tilting closer to Eggsy so they could both look at it. “Your mother is also very pretty,” he finished and Eggsy fought the waves of sadness trying to overtake him as he reached out and brushed the corner of the page with his finger. 

It pained him to look at his mother happy when he hadn’t seen her smile that way in years. He tilted his head some, looking into her eyes and wishing it were real. “My mum is beautiful, ain’t she?” Eggsy asked softly, not trusting his voice if he put any real timbre in it. “Ain’t never met anybody half as stunning as her.”

“I would say you give her a run for her money,” Harry said, and Eggsy looked at him in disbelief, only to catch a small smile on Harry’s lips. “But you look just like her.” He slid down a bit lower so he and Eggsy were more even, eyes a bit glassy to show how pissed he really was. “No wonder you’re so goddamn beautiful if you’ve got a mother who looks this stunning in spite of looking this sad.”

Eggsy frowned. “How can you tell she’s sad?” he asked, ignoring the swooping sensation in his stomach over Harry calling him beautiful. 

Harry looked at Eggsy then back at the drawing. “Her eyes,” he said sadly. “The detail in her eyes is so precise, so exact, that it’s obvious you worked very hard to make her smile genuinely happy, even though the lines in her face and the shape of her mouth says it wasn’t a happy smile before you did so much work on the eyes.”

Eggsy bit his lip and shook his head, insides churning as he gave in and blurted out something he’d wanted – needed – to tell someone, anyone, but never been able to. “I’m just so scared I won’t be able to stop Daisy from growin’ up to have that same look on her face, Harry. She looks just like me and just like Mum and I don’t ever want that broken down and haunted look that was really in her eyes to ever be on my baby girl.” He looked up to meet Harry’s rather intense gaze. “How can you tell the look in her eyes is one I worked hard on?”

“Because I know how hard I worked on making Miranda and Caroline’s love so sincere when I’ve never known love like that the same way you’ve never known that level of true happiness in your mother’s eyes,” Harry confessed hoarsely.

Eggsy frowned a bit. “What? Harry, you’re too good of a man to not know love like they have,” he muttered.

Harry leaned in a bit. “And you’re too young to need to fake happiness in your art when you’re so talented and beautiful.” Eggsy’s breath caught just as Harry raised a hand and stroked his bangs back from his forehead. Eggsy couldn’t find the words to ask what Harry was doing, so he just sat, still and silent, as Harry closed the small gap between them and pressed a kiss to his lips. He barely even breathed until Harry finally pulled away, looked him in the eyes, and then slumped against the couch, hands dropping so he no longer touched Eggsy.

Eggsy just leaned his head against the couch as well, brushing his lips with a fingertip as he and Harry both just stared into the void.

~

Eggsy didn’t remember falling asleep on the floor next to Harry, but he woke up with his head on Harry’s lap and Harry leaned back against the couch, fast asleep, with a hand curled into Eggsy’s hair.

When the memory of the night before – of Harry _kissing him_ \- hit him, Eggsy carefully snuck out before he could wake Harry up and have to face the fact he’d spent the night getting pissed with a _man_ he was incredibly drawn to and it had ended in a kiss shared between them. It was too much to even pretend to handle.

It was only two days later, after ignoring the problem by not going to walk Sherman, that his mother got home from taking Daisy with her to do the shopping and Eggsy was hit with a sharp reminder of what he’d been ignoring. “Eggsy?” she called just as he was coming out of his room “Oh, there you are,” she said, putting down a bag as Daisy rushed over to Eggsy and hugged him.

“Eggsy, you’re back!” she said excitedly, grinning up at him. “Guess what!”

“What, my darlin’?” he asked with an encouraging smile.

Daisy bounced some, her little arms still hugging him tight around the middle, her chin resting on his belly. “Mummy says you get to take me with you to go walk Roxy’s dog!” she exclaimed, bouncing away from him. “Doggy, doggy, doggy!” 

Eggsy’s stomach clenched and he looked up at his mother. “What?”

She gave him a pleading look. “Please, Eggsy. Dean’s mates are comin’ round to talk business and I don’t want her around that lot,” she said, and his jaw tightened as he fought back the wave of anger at that news. He knew damn well ‘talk business’ meant sort out who was going to run what drugs and what guns went to what bloke and all that sort of shit. 

Eggsy didn’t want to go walk Sherman. He didn’t want to go face Harry. He _really_ didn’t want to take Daisy with him to do those things, but between the fact he did feel bad for breaking his promise to Roxy and the fact Daisy needed to be anywhere else but there, he kept his mouth shut and just decided to do it. 

Besides, if he argued, his mum would want to know why, and he didn’t want to raise any sort of suspicion. Not about that. He knew damn well how Dean would react if he ever found out Eggsy had a crush on a posh _bloke_ and had _kissed_ him, even.

Not even his mother could save him from that, he feared.

~

Eggsy had Daisy at his side when he finally sucked up the courage to knock on the door at Roxy’s house. She didn’t seem to notice his unease so he forced himself to keep it that way, even when the door opened and Harry looked at him with wide eyes. “Eggsy, I was starting to get worried. You never showed up and I had no way to contact you,” he said quickly. “I’m incredibly sorry if my behavior the other evening upset you, that wasn’t at all my intention-“

“Stuff just came up,” Eggsy muttered, cutting him off. He shook Daisy’s hand, looking down at her. “Daisy here came to play with Sherman while we take him for a walk, right, Dais?”

Harry seemed to only just then notice the small girl at his side, and he smiled politely. “Well hello, Miss Daisy. I’ve heard quite a bit about you.”

Daisy eyed him curiously. “Who’re you?” she asked bluntly and Eggsy shook her hand slightly, giving her a chastising look.

“Daisy, that’s rude.”

Harry chuckled, squatting down to her level. “My name is Harry. Roxy’s uncle,” he said, offering his hand.

Daisy stared at him for a moment before beaming. “You wanna come play with the doggy with us, Harry?” she asked, and he smiled.

“I-“

Eggsy cut him off before he could continue, “Daisy, Harry probably has a lot to do, he ain’t got time to go play with a dog.”

“Actually,” Harry said, standing up straight again. “I could use a stroll. Some fresh air would do me some good.” He gave him a more significant look that made Eggsy’s insides twist. “I also would like to speak to you, if that’s at all-“

“Well, hey, if we’re going to walk Sherman, let’s go,” Eggsy said quickly, grabbing Daisy’s shoulder. “C’mon, let’s go get him.”

“Yay, doggy!” Daisy cried, and Harry obligingly stepped aside, though there was a pinched look on his face as he did so.

When Eggsy started to pass, Harry caught his wrist and leaned close. “Eggsy, we should talk-“

“Bout what, then?” Eggsy said dismissively, pulling away to follow Daisy. “Sherman! Time for a walk!” he called, keeping his back to Harry and ignoring swooping, seasick feeling he got after Harry’s fingers trailed along his skin. 

Eggsy ignored Harry’s eyes the whole time he got Sherman ready to go and held hands with Daisy and walked with Sherman on the other side of him so that Harry had to lag behind where he could ignore him better. There was so much he was thinking and so little he wanted to think about that it was a nightmare. Daisy was only able to distract him so much, and Sherman was keeping all of her attention. Harry also seemed to be an object of interest to Daisy. 

“Harry, do you think Sherman can chase sticks?” Daisy asked, and Harry chuckled.

“Of course he can. He’s a very well trained dog,” Harry told her with a polite nod towards a stick on the ground. “If you get that and show it to him, when you throw it he will know you want him to get it.”

“Really?” She turned and ran towards a stick and snatched it up. “C’mon, Doggy! C’mon!”

Eggsy reached out when she started waving the stick. “Easy there, Dais. You should be careful with that, you’ll hit him in the face.”

Daisy frowned. “But Harry said to show it to the Doggy.”

“I don’t care, you’ll hurt him or yourself,” Eggsy warned.

Harry chuckled. “Eggsy, Sherman’s fine, she’s just excited-“

“And she could hurt herself or Sherman,” Eggsy interrupted, giving him a glare. “I’ve been lookin’ after my sister her whole life, Harry, I know better than you or anybody else how to fuckin’ keep her from doin’ shit she shouldn’t do,” he argued. Harry gave him a long look and Eggsy turned back to Daisy. “Put down the stick, Daisy. We need to get Sherman back home anyways. It’s time for us to go home.”

“But I wanna play with Harry and the doggy longer, Eggsy-“

“Daisy, Mr. Harry and Sherman need to go home,” he said calmly.

Harry tutted. “Nonsense, Sherman can always use some exercise and Daisy is a marvelous conversationalist,” he said with a playful smile. “She promised to tell me all about her favorite kind of dog-“

“We have to go,” Eggsy interrupted, reaching for Sherman’s collar to clip the lead back on.

“Eggsy-“

“C’mon, Daisy,” he said curtly, reaching out for her hand to lead the way back to Roxy’s house. 

When they got back, Eggsy left Daisy in the hall while he went to put Sherman’s lead up, only to stop on his way back when he heard Daisy talking to Harry. “Eggsy loves doggies even more than me!”

“Does he now? Have you ever had a dog?” Harry asked her in a tone that made it seem like he was far more interested in what she had to say than anything else at that moment.

“No, we can’t have one, but Eggsy draws me pretty doggies all the time!” she answered. “I got a lot of drawings at home.”

Eggsy came into the hall, hands in his pockets. “Alright, Dais, we need to get going.”

Harry straightened up and smiled sadly. “I was rather hoping I could have a word-“

“Nah, we gotta go,” Eggsy said quickly, turning his eyes away. He reached out for Daisy’s hand, only to stop when Harry’s fingers brushed the wrist of his other hand.

“Eggsy,” he said softly, almost desperately, but Eggsy just pulled away, continuing on with Daisy.

Daisy twisted around and waved at Harry when Eggsy opened the door. “Bye, Harry!” she called, and Harry walked them to the door and shook Daisy’s hand with a warm smile.

“Have a lovely rest of your day, Miss Daisy,” he said and then looked at Eggsy with such a sad smile that Eggsy felt guilty for putting it there. “Goodbye, Eggsy.”

“Bye, Harry,” he said softly as he took Daisy’s hand and they made their way home.

~

Daisy was asleep in her bed in spite of the noise from his mum and her mates drinking in the living room since Dean had fucked off to God knows where for a few days, meaning there was no chance he’d come home and kick off over loud, drunk women in his house. Every time he left, his mum used the excuse to get pissed and do it loudly, no matter that he had work the next morning and Daisy needed proper sleep at her age. 

Because he was unable to drop off, he couldn’t stop seeing the sad look in Harry’s eyes when he’d left that afternoon. He felt horrible for being such a terrible shit to Harry when all he’d wanted was to talk when Eggsy wanted to ignore it all. It wasn’t Harry’s fault for a minute and Eggsy damn well knew that. He just didn’t want to face the fact that Harry kissing him had felt so much better than he knew a kiss could feel. The truth was – and it was a truth Eggsy had worked very hard to ignore – Eggsy had never kissed a man before Harry kissed him and he had avoided it like the plague because he knew damn well it would make it impossible to ever go back to kissing girls and enjoy it the same.

When Eggsy was twelve years old the first crush he ever had on anybody at school was on another boy in his class. That was about the same time his mum had started dating Dean, and even though it was a while before Dean ever started hitting him, he had always been scared of him. It was painfully clear straight off that Dean wouldn’t ever put up with a poof for a stepson. He had heard the shit Dean and his mates said all the time, and even before he ever had to worry about being beaten to death if he ever gave a hint at being gay, he was terrified of the consequences.

But he was gay. He’d known it since that first crush. It was just something he’d repressed until it became second nature.

He’d gone out with girls as a teenager and he’d gone out with them before Daisy was born, and he made it work. It wasn’t hard to date a girl. He liked girls in general, there was nothing wrong with women, no matter what Dean and his bastard mates sometimes said, so hanging out with the same girl for a few months was no bother. He even enjoyed sex with girls, so it wasn’t like he was having to force himself into thinking of men in bed, because sex was just sex. It was physical pleasure, and even if it wasn’t his preference, sex was sex. But he’d never once had the sort of feelings for girls as he did for men. He’d meet blokes every once in a while that he felt butterflies over. Any time he ever imagined falling in love, it was always with a man. There was no future for him that included a wife and children, and he’d honestly been fine with that for the longest. After Daisy came along, he didn’t even bother dating girls other than occasionally going out for a drink or two with one to keep his mate from getting suspicious. Between practically raising a child while working a shit job, it wasn’t like girls were beating down his door for a date, and he didn’t have that much spare time anyways, nonetheless money to take a girl out with.

But Harry had managed to do what Eggsy had forced himself to not do for all his life, and that was to give him a taste of what it was like to be touched by a man’s warm, strong hands, not a girls soft, gentle touch, and to feel the scrape of evening stubble along his chin when he was kissed. As hard as he’d been avoiding Harry, there was no doubt at all that, over the past few days all he could think about was how much he wanted to feel that stubble on his skin in other places and be touched by those hands again.

Even before Harry ever kissed him, Eggsy had wanted him, but ‘not chance in hell’ wank fodder was not the same as having a man – a bloody fucking gorgeous man at that – show specific interest in him in return. It was the worst torture Eggsy could think of, to know that the swooping sensation he felt every time his and Harry’s eyes met was one that was returned. Lying in his bed, unable to sleep, all he could do was think about Harry’s sad face and the gnawing guilt in his belly at the thought that _he_ was the one that Harry was sad over. 

Harry, who was a good man. A smart, creative man who wrote beautiful romance novels and got cheated on by wankers who didn’t deserve him. A man who was so goddamn handsome and well-dressed and kind and wonderful and who deserved whatever he wanted in life… 

And for some fucking reason, what he wanted was Eggsy.

Eggsy bit back a curse and rolled onto his back, staring at the ceiling for a moment, jaw working as he swallowed hard. He shut his eyes and took a deep breath, and then he made a decision he knew damn well he might regret.

He sat up, got out of bed, and quickly changed clothes to leave.

When he got out of his room, his mum and her friends were all sitting around laughing and chattering loudly, and he tried his best to keep his head down and ease past them, but one of his mum’s mates called out to him. “Oi, where you off to then, Gorgeous?”

His mum looked up, raising an eyebrow. “Eggsy? Babes, where you goin’ this time of night?” she asked him with a frown.

“Just goin’ out for a bit. Can’t sleep, ya know?” he said, and her mate - Chantal, if he remembered right – let out a woop.

“Somebody got a late night text, didn’t he, ya pretty thing,” she teased and he rolled his eyes.

“Goodnight, ladies,” he said as he pushed on and got out the door before his mum could call him back and ask anything else. He wasn’t sure what lie he’d make up if she genuinely wanted to know where he was heading, because he wasn’t sure himself what the hell he was going to do. He just knew he had to do something.

~

When Eggsy got to Roxy’s house it was very, very late. He immediately felt like a complete idiot, going all the way to Roxy’s house on a whim like that. Harry was either asleep or wishing he was asleep, and Eggsy felt pretty sure this was a horrible mistake, but he couldn’t help wanting to…

Something. 

He had no idea what he wanted, but he knew it involved ringing the bell at one in the morning and hoping Harry didn’t call the police rather than answer the door for a strange visitor that time of night. Eggsy flipped through so many things to say to Harry in his head that he had covered almost every scenario by the time the light in the hall switched on and the clicking of the lock being undone dragged him back to the present.

However, not a single one of them prepared him for the sight of a sleep-soft Harry Hart standing in front of him in a red dressing gown, with bare feet, a soft, confused look on his face, and – best of all – errant curls sticking up all over. Any plan Eggsy had flew out the window the moment Harry opened his mouth and said, “Eggsy?” in an adorably confused yet sleep-rough tine.

Eggsy startled himself some even as he, without a single hesitation, stepped over the threshold and immediately into Harry’s space, angling his head up to kiss him firmly. His hands snaked around Harry’s middle, palms flattening on his strong, broad back as he pushed into the kiss, heart pounding in his ears as he waited to be rejected.

Instead, Harry seemed to come to his senses in an entirely different manner, because the way the door was slammed shut behind him by his own body after Harry shoved him up against it startled a moan from his throat. Harry kissed him back with abandon and, by the time Harry broke the kiss and met his eyes, Eggsy knew he had fucked up, because he’d be hard pressed to ever give up the manhandling a man larger than himself was capable of. “Harry,” he moaned weakly, and Harry seemed to take his broken plea as all the consent he needed before swooping in and kissing Eggsy this time, taking him apart with the sweep of his tongue across his lips.

Eggsy was pretty sure it wasn’t just his desire for men he’d been suppressing all along that made Harry’s kiss set him on fire. Harry kissed like Eggsy was all that existed in the universe and it was his sole responsibility to devour him, pleasure him, and reduce him to a mess of melted Eggsy. Eggsy gasped as the kiss broke so they could _breathe_ , both of them panting like they’d ran a sprint, and Harry cupped his face in his hand, angling Eggsy’s face to look into his eyes. In the depths of Harry’s warm, lovely brown eyes, Eggsy saw more hope and fear than he ever had thought anyone would look at him with, and it was all he needed to convince him that he’d made the right choice in coming here, not a horrible mistake. “Fuck, I need you, Harry,” he panted and Harry nodded, diving in to kiss him one more hard, fast time.

“Upstairs?”

“Fuck yeah, upstairs,” Eggsy groaned, leaning into Harry to shove him back towards the stairs. Together they stumbled up the stairs, unwilling to release each other for even that short trip, and Eggsy had to laugh at the way that they left a trail of clothes and shifted picture frames the whole way up the stairs and into the guest bedroom.

When they got inside, Harry startled Eggsy in the sexiest way by picking him up by a hand under his ass, the other coming to catch his leg when Eggsy tightened his knees around him, and he then carried him to the bed. The bed was already unmade and warmed from Harry sleeping in it minutes ago, so it was no problem to let Harry tug off his shorts – the only thing left on his body – and then just sit back and look him over, eyes burning with lust as they took in his body.

“Please,” Eggsy whimpered, reaching out to brace his hand on Harry’s knee as he sat up and kissed him. “I need you, Harry.”

Harry growled, turning to trail kisses along his jaw, up towards his ear. “Later we’re talking about this, but Gods, I couldn’t take my hands off you right now if the house caught fire.” He slid his hands up the insides of Eggsy’s thighs and Eggsy whined, flopping flat on his back, allowing Harry to spread his legs on either side of him.

Eggsy raggedly gasped, reaching out to snag Harry’s elbow. “C’mere,” he commanded, tugging him until he fell flat on top of Eggsy, startling a moan out of him when Harry’s cock nestled along the groove of his hip. Harry wasted no time turning his head aside and laying waste to every coherent thought Eggsy had with his mouth along his jaw and his ear and his neck.

Harry rolled their hips together, providing just enough friction to take Eggsy from ‘interested’ to hard as a rock, but his assault of sensation was a result of his entire body’s devotion to pleasuring Eggsy. His mouth – teeth, tongue, lips – made quick work of finding every erogenous zone Eggsy had from the shoulders up, all while his hands caressed, grabbed, and squeezed at Eggsy’s chest, hips, and bum respectively, and the movement of his hips against Eggsy’s did something positively sinful to send shivers up Eggsy’s spine and to every extremity. 

Harry moved him where he wanted him, held him down when he felt like it, touched him in ways he had never been touched before, and before Eggsy could even manage coherent words to warn Harry he was close, Harry had him sobbing out in pleasure and making a mess of himself. All Eggsy could do is lay there, breathing heavily, eyes glassy and words incapable of being found, splayed out utterly debauched beneath Harry, who drank him in as he finished himself off, making Eggsy’s already filthy body even more filthy. 

After he finished, he collapsed into the bed beside Eggsy. Eggsy, still incapable of full sentences, just moaned softly, rolling into Harry’s side. “Harry,” he breathed, and Harry turned his head and kissed his forehead, rolling over until he could sling an arm around Eggsy, holding him close as his eyelashes fluttered.

“Shhhhh, I’ve got you, Eggsy,” he murmured, nosing into his cheek. “Just breathe.”

Eggsy snuggled closer, getting comfy before turning to peck his lips, lingering for just a second. “I’ve never been with a man before,” he whispered, pressing his forehead against Harry’s jaw.

Harry just hummed, holding him close. “Good thing we didn’t try to fuck then,” he said and Eggsy found himself incapable of not giggling until Harry kissed him again. “Goodnight, Eggsy.”

Eggsy hummed, nuzzling into Harry’s neck and shoulder to get comfy. “Night, Harry.”

As he fell asleep that night, even in the disgusting state he was in, Eggsy had never felt lighter and more comfortable in his entire life than he did lying in Harry’s arms after a night of passion together.

~

When Eggsy woke up, he was reluctant to move. Harry was warm and firm behind him and the dried, disgusting mess on his belly made him regret not getting up to clean up the night before. He carefully extricated himself from Harry’s hold and went to the bathroom in the hall. Just as he started the shower, feeling of the water as it warmed up, he heard a creak and turned to see Harry leaning against the doorframe, watching him with as he stood naked by the shower. Eggsy blushed some, biting his lip. “Good morning,” he said, and Harry just chuckled, yawning.

“You woke me up, you little shit,” he teased, walking forward. Eggsy wasn’t sure what he expected, but Harry catching him around the middle and stealing a soft kiss was very welcome. “Mind if I join you?” he asked, and Eggsy shook his head, eyeing the stubble on Harry’s chin. He decided he wanted to kiss his stubbly cheek, so he did, stepping into Harry’s space fully to trail kisses up his jaw. 

“Not at all,” he murmured, sliding his hands up Harry’s chest before stepping away and winking before climbing into the shower. However, before Harry could follow him, Eggsy caught sight of the sun out the window and cursed colorfully, nearly falling in the shower.

“Eggsy? Are you alright?” Harry asked in alarm, and Eggsy stuck his head out the shower.

“Shit, sorry, but I ain’t got time for a shared shower,” he said quickly, then shut the curtain, grabbing bottles blindly, trying to wash himself and shampoo his hair all at once. 

“Eggsy, whatever is the matter?” Harry asked and Eggsy spluttered as he got soap in his mouth. “Eggsy?”

Eggsy finished rinsing off and nearly fell out of the shower, lunging for a towel. “Shit, shit, shit, I ain’t got time, I’m sorry, talk later, yeah?” he said, stumbling past Harry as he rushed back to gather up his clothes, pulling them on along the way, hopping down steps on one foot, hoping he didn’t break his neck while he tried to get dressed. He rushed out the door, trusting Harry would lock it behind him, hopping into his shoes on the way.

He was late for work and he damn well knew it.

~

When Eggsy got off work – after getting a thorough dressing down for showing up without his uniform – he went back to Roxy’s house to do his job of walking Sherman and actually _talk_ to Harry.

The whole tube ride back to his neighborhood, he couldn’t stop remembering the things Harry had made him feel the night before and ducking his head down into his hood to hide his smile. It wasn’t just the sex – though that was damn good, thank you very much – it was the way he felt when Harry looked into his eyes and made him feel good, and beautiful, and worth something. Harry smiled at him in a way that made him eager for the next smile that would come, and it was all he could do to stop from singing and dancing his way through his shift, he was so happy.

When he got to Roxy’s house, he feared for one, terrifying moment that Harry might possibly regret the night before, but he didn’t let that stop him from letting himself in. “Sherman?” he called out. “Sherman, time for a walk!”

“In here,” Harry’s voice called and, much to Eggsy’s surprise, when he walked into the living room, Sherman was laying with his head on Harry’s lap. Harry shrugged. “I haven’t the foggiest.”

“What the fuck, Sherman, you bipolar dog,” Eggsy said, coming over to rub his flank. “You hate him one day, then you wanna love all over him the next.” Sherman sat up and whuffed at Eggsy’s hand before scrambling off the couch and rushing towards the hall where his lead was left hanging. 

Eggsy smiled and shook his head in amusement, but before he could follow him, Harry stood and caught his eye. Eggsy turned back to him and bit his lip sheepishly, putting his hands in his pockets. “Hi,” he said with a small grin.

Harry raised an eyebrow. “Am I going to get an explanation for why you literally ran half-dressed out the house this morning, or should I even bother asking? I know I don’t look that great first thing in the morning, but that’s a first.”

“Oh shut up,” Eggsy groaned, rolling his eyes. “I was incredibly late for work, that’s what,” he said, walking a few steps closer until he could look up into Harry’s eyes. “I didn’t really plan on…” He blushed. “Well, I’m not sure what I thought I’d do when I came here last night, but pretty sure it didn’t involve still being here this morning.”

Harry chuckled warmly. “Well that’s a relief. Good to know I’m not just that horrible looking before I’ve combed my hair and had a shave.”

“About that,” Eggsy said abruptly, reaching up to touch Harry’s hair lightly. “What on earth do you do to it to make it look like this? You got a mess of curls.”

“The right hair product is a godsend,” Harry confided, and Eggsy hummed, eyeing his hair for a bit. “Not a curl in site, is there?”

“Nah, but it looks so good all messy and curly,” Eggsy countered. He slid his hand down to curl around the back of Harry’s neck lightly. “I really am sorry for just runnin’ off,” he started. “I know it had to seem-“

“I did fear for a moment you’d changed your mind and panicked,” Harry admitted. “But I had hope that you would explain it all later.” He smiled, resting his hands on Eggsy’s waist. “Not a panic then?”

Eggsy shook his head. “Nah.” He leaned into Harry’s space, resting his free hand on Harry’s chest. “Actually pretty sure I ain’t never been less afraid than I am of you,” he admitted softly.

Harry leaned down and pressed a kiss to his lips, just a gentle brush that made Eggsy’s skin tingle. “What did you come here for last night if not to seduce me, then?” he asked and Eggsy snorted.

“No fuckin’ clue. I just couldn’t sleep. My mum and her friends were drinkin’ and being loud and I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” He shrugged. “I think I probably wanted to talk to you and explain why I was being such a wanker to you after you kissed me, but all I could think about is how much I liked it and then you were in front of me, lookin’ hot as fuck, and I couldn’t help it.”

Harry looked at him for a moment, searching his eyes before drawing back. “I really think there is a bigger conversation we might should have, but right now, Sherman needs his walk.”

Eggsy groaned. “We’ve gotta talk about all this shit-“

“Yes, Eggsy,” Harry said firmly and Eggsy made a face.

“Fine, fine.” He turned to go back out into the hall. “Sherman! C’mon, boy! We’re goin’ for a fuckin’ walk so the handsome fuck in the living room will let me fuckin’ kiss him again.”

He could hear Harry laughing at him on his way out the door with Sherman.

~

For all Harry said they needed to talk, it didn’t take more than a kiss and a few murmured suggestions to get Harry to say ‘fuck it’ and take him to bed. For someone who had never slept with a man before, Eggsy was able to fully confirm that his being gay in theory was most definitely a sure thing in practice. Harry was hard in all the right places - _ha_ \- and he would be quite happy sucking Harry’s cock until the end of times, he discovered. 

“I fuckin’ knew I was gay,” Eggsy sighed, stretching his arms over his head as Harry absently pressed kisses across his stomach while they caught their breath after a particularly wonderful make-up round for the shower skipped that morning.

Harry propped himself up on his elbows on either side of Eggsy’s body, hands resting on his ribs. “You mentioned last night you’d never been with a man before, so I genuinely assumed you were just non-preferential in that department.”

Eggsy huffed. “God no.” He reached out and trailed his finger along Harry’s wrist. “I- well, you know me well enough by now to know I ain’t got the easiest life. Ain’t never had it that easy,” he muttered, looking away from Harry’s eyes. “I’ve always known I was gay, cause the first kid I ever had a crush on in school was a boy and I’ve pretty much only ever looked at men that way.” He shook his head. “But that weren’t ever really an option for me.”

Harry hummed, rubbing his thumbs along the ridges of Eggsy’s ribs slowly, not in a ticklish way, but in a soothing one. “Generally back in my days as a young man, when most of us didn’t really ‘have that option’, we just snuck around to do it.”

Eggsy shook his head quickly. “There weren’t no sneaking around. Not with my stepdad. Even before he started hitting me just cause he felt like hitting somebody, I knew damn well what he’d do if he ever found out.” He shrugged. “I just always pushed it down. It ain’t hard to go out with girls. I never really met a bloke I felt I could have more than friendship with, and I like girls just as much as blokes when it comes to being friends, and sex is just sex, so it ain’t that hard to go out with a girl for a while occasionally. Longest I ever went with one was three months, so nobody got suspicious when I didn’t ever love any of them. Yeah, I always knew I’d much rather sleep with a man, but it’s not like I’m one of those people that’s disgusted by the thought of straight sex or nothing. S’alright,” he dismissed. “Better to have something not serious with a girl for a few months and just let it die out naturally and get away with another six months single than get _murdered_ ,” he said bluntly. “And since Daisy was born, I ain’t got time or money to take a girl out places, so nobody really questions if we don’t go out but a few times or if I don’t go out with anybody at all for a long time.”

Harry shook his head with a sad look in his eyes. “But hasn’t it been lonely living that way? I mean, I’m not one to judge, but the thought of making it to your age and having never had a serious relationship sounds so lonely.”

“Not really,” Eggsy said honestly. “It hasn’t ever really bothered me. I mean, yeah, denying who I really am sucks a lot, it kills me to pretend I’m alright with all the homophobic shit people say around me, and all, but I’ve never felt like I was missing anything.” He smiled, curling his hand around Harry’s wrist until he turned his hand over and let Eggsy hold his hand. “I’ve never had a hot, sexy, gorgeous fucker like you even look twice at me so it weren’t no trouble. You’re definitely the first bloke who seemed to genuinely be interested other than the occasional look or wink on the tube.”

Harry scoffed. “Fucking ridiculous. In the world we live in today, if I were young, I’d probably flirt with every boy that so much as glanced my way. I nearly did even in the much more dangerous climate there was when I was young.”

Eggsy giggled. “That’s because you’re fuckin’ shameless,” he teased, tugging until Harry crawled up over him. “Also, hot as you are, pretty sure any man you so much as smile at gets a hard-on, even if he’s not into men,” he accused, tugging Harry into a kiss.

Harry grumbled against his lips. “You’re flattering as always, Eggsy, but I’m really not that hot.”

“Bullshit,” Eggsy said bluntly. “You’re fuckin’ gorgeous, Harry Hart. It’s ridiculous. Have you seen a mirror before?” He ruffled his hair, grinning at the way it was already starting to curl after the product got mussed. “Besides, you ain’t as old as you make yourself out to be, Harry. You damn well don’t look it.” He kissed his jaw and slid a hand down Harry’s chest and to his _abs_. “Who the fuck has abs like this without being some fitness freak? Fucking seriously, Harry. You’re like something out of a dirty photograph.”

“Maybe if you’ve got a subscription to ‘Middle Aged Homosexuals With No Future’. I’m an author who has made it to forty-five single, Eggsy,” he murmured, kissing down his jaw. “I should get four cats and learn to knit doilies at this point.”

Eggsy giggled slightly as he turned to shove Harry over onto his back, settling on his hips. “Harry, the only reason you’re forty-five and not married is because you’re so bloody gorgeous you attract the sort that are still too hot to settle for one person before their looks go off,” he said, leaning down to kiss him sweetly before sitting up again, bracing his hands on Harry’s middle. “What you need,” he said in mock-seriousness, “is someone who can see the rest of you.” He winked. “You ain’t just a pretty shell, Love. You’re actually a really great person. Pretty kind, understanding, and damn funny.” He leaned in and kissed Harry again. “A full package like that ain’t what you expect at first glance.”

“Oh?” Harry asked. “And what do you expect at first glance?”

“A posh git,” Eggsy answered with a grin. “A sexy posh git, but a posh git all the same. And going by the way you dress, you’d think you’re an uptight posh git. Hate to tell you, but you can get this pinched look when you’re mildly annoyed that looks more like you need good, solid fuck to make you relax.”

Harry gave a playful growl and flipped him over, startling a laugh out of Eggsy. Harry knelt over him, smiling through his feigned angry expression when Eggsy didn’t just laugh once, but continued to laugh, shaking the bed with it. Eggsy felt like such an idiot for having a laughing fit naked in bed with a gorgeous man, but the amused smile Harry gave giving him was a small source of comfort at least. “I was going to make a joke about how maybe I should fuck you, but it appears laughter is what you needed to make the line between your eyebrows relax away,” he murmured, sweeping Eggsy’s bangs aside sweetly.

As Eggsy settled, he couldn’t help the ridiculous burst of flutters in his belly at the affection in Harry’s eyes. “I haven’t felt so relaxed in so long,” he admitted as his laughter died down. He shook his head slightly as he reached up and curled his arms around Harry’s shoulders, tugging until Harry settled between his hips, weight held by his elbows on either side of Eggsy. “I’ve spent so many years constantly being the one to try and hold shit together. Maybe all I needed was someone to hold me.”

Harry let out a breath almost as if he was in a rush to speak. “You’re so beautiful.”

Eggsy flushed and rolled his eyes. “Shut up.”

Harry kissed him sweetly, bumping their noses together with a small smile. “Learn to take a compliment, Eggsy. You _are_ beautiful. Far more than I am, and you sing my praises.”

Eggsy bit his lip to fight a grin, only to let his lip go with a small huff. “Fuck me, Harry,” he chuckled and Harry smirked.

“Was that an exclamation or a request?” He pressed a kiss to Eggsy’s lips, and then his chin, making his way down his throat. “Because I may not be as young as I once was, but I’m sure I could manage to comply with that one.”

Eggsy snorted, shoving at Harry when he nipped at his collar bone. “As much as I’d like, I’m hungry.” He poked Harry until he made a grumpy sound and got off of Eggsy. “I ain’t ate yet today.”

Harry sat up quickly when Eggsy slid out of bed. “What? You haven’t eaten all day?” he asked in surprise. “Eggsy! You should’ve said something!”

Eggsy shrugged dismissively. “It ain’t unusual. I didn’t have any time and I haven’t got paid yet this week-“

“Eggsy, you go without eating regularly?” Harry asked, grabbing his robe to pull on while watching Eggsy tug on his own shirt, which hung down to Eggsy’s thighs. “I’ve watched you eat, I assumed you ate a lot, actually. How are you not rail thin if you skip meals?”

Eggsy shrugged. “I actually get fat really easy,” he admitted with a wink. “My arse get’s well round even.”

Harry followed him when he went to the kitchen and Eggsy sighed, glancing back at the look of unease on his face. “Harry, it ain’t a big deal. I don’t get that much money to start with, and when it’s near time to get paid, I’m usually a bit short.” He shook his head. “I always make sure Daisy’s got food before I worry about myself, and I bought groceries yesterday on the way home and spent the rest of my money.” He set a takeaway container on the counter and stepped up to Harry, shaking him a bit by his hips. “It’s _fine_ -“

“It’s not at all fine, Eggsy,” Harry said in an utterly heartbroken tone as he looked into his eyes. He cupped Eggsy’s face in his hand. “Every time you tell me something about your life, I feel like a bit more of me breaks. Nobody should live like this, don’t you see? You do everything you can and yet you still are left sacrificing everything you have for what? For a criminal stepfather and a mother who can’t take care of her own child, so you’re left to?”

“I don’t mind Daisy-“

Eggsy was cut off before he could get defensive by a gentle finger to his lips. “I know, Eggsy. I know you don’t, and I’d never suggest you _should_. Of course you don’t mind her. But being a good brother is all you should _have_ to be. You shouldn’t have all the responsibilities for her. You’re not her father or her mother.”

Eggsy smiled sadly, pressing a kiss to Harry’s fingertip before pulling away. “I’m the only father she’s ever known, so yeah, I do have to. Should or shouldn’t don’t matter, Harry. In my world, all that matters is what is and what isn’t. And Daisy is my responsibility and I ain’t never regretted taking on that responsibility. Never will.”

“I know,” Harry said softly, brushing his lips to Eggsy’s forehead before he pulled away. “Right, let’s get you fed, then. Can’t have you fainting and hitting your head and me having to explain to the police that I’m a non-legal, non-genetic uncle of the homeowner and you are the non-related best friend of said homeowner, and that home-owner isn’t even here.”

Eggsy winked. “The look on Roxy’s face if she had to come home early cause plod think we’ve shacked up in her empty house for our sexcapades would be almost worth it, though.”

“It most certainly would not, you little tart,” Harry muttered, giving Eggsy a dark look for even suggesting it. 

~

When Eggsy got home, after spending another night with Harry and then working all morning, the first person he ran into was his mum. “Well hey there, strange boy in my home,” she joked. “You ain’t been home since you left night before last. Started to worry you weren’t gonna come back.” She leaned back against the counter, smirking. “You gone and got yourself a girl, then?

Eggsy rolled his eyes. “Mum,” he muttered and she grinned.

“Oh come on, Eggsy. Who is it? Do I know her?” she asked. She nudged him. “She pretty at least? As handsome as you’ve grown up to be, I bet she is,” she said, reaching out to squeeze his cheek just to make him whine and swat at her with a laugh.

“Mum, c’mon-“

“Michelle! Where the FUCK did you put my lighter?” They both stilled and something broke in him a bit when his mother flinched at Dean’s voice. It was too nice of a moment for that prick to ruin it for her and he hated him more than he usually did right then.

She turned to Eggsy with a forced smile, voice low. “Maybe you should take Daisy with ya when you go to walk that dog, ay?”

Eggsy bit back what he wanted to really say and instead, he nodded. “Alright,” he agreed, kissing her cheek quickly. “We’ll just go on, then, Mum,” he said, leaving her there as he went to fetch Daisy from their bedroom.

~

When Harry opened the door, Daisy waved exuberantly at him. “Hello, Harry!” she said excitedly, and Harry gave her an exaggerated look of surprise.

“Well hello, Miss Daisy! I swear, I think you’re taller than last I saw you,” he said, putting a hand on the top of her head and holding it up to his own leg. “I didn’t know you would be visiting today,” he said, looking up at Eggsy, who smiled apologetically. “Why don’t you go on and find Sherman, then, Daisy.”

“Yay!” she cried, darting past his legs, already calling for Sherman.

“Sorry, but I had to bring her with me,” Eggsy started. “Mum asked me to bring her since Dean was in a mood and I couldn’t very well say no-“

“Nonsense,” Harry dismissed. “Why on earth wouldn’t you bring her? She’s such a darling child.”

Eggsy eyed him dubiously. “You’re seriously alright with me bringin’ my baby sister to the house?”

Harry shrugged. “Why not? You love her more than anything else in this world, why wouldn’t I want to get to know her better?” He gave Eggsy a small smile. “You are aware I have feelings for you, not just a passing fancy, Eggsy. She’s important to you, so she should be important to me one day as well.”

Eggsy felt his face heat up and he was overwhelmed with the urge to kiss the shit out of Harry. “God, you’re fuckin’ perfect, you are.” He darted in and kissed him really fast. “Shit, you can’t say things like that when I’m not allowed to jump you.”

Harry gave a flirty little smile. “What? I’m not allowed to tell you the truth-“

“No! Lie to me! Make shit up to make you sound like a prick, not someone I imagined very vividly to fulfill my every fuckin’ fantasy,” Eggsy countered with a teasing wink. “Well, alright, we ain’t got around to a _few_ of ‘em, but there’s time for that later.”

Harry groaned, narrowing his eyes. “You are a cruel man-“

“Eggsy! Harry! Sherman wants to go walkin’!” Daisy shouted, giggling as Sherman practically pulled her to the door as she held onto his collar with her hands. “Nooo! Sherman, stoppit!”

Eggsy smiled. “Awww, you’re so small he don’t know his own strength is all.” He slapped his legs, passing Harry to go inside. “C’mon, Sherman. Can’t go walking without a lead, silly bugger.”

Daisy walked over to wait by the door with Harry, casually sliding her hand into his. He looked at her in surprise, but she didn’t seem to have any reaction whatsoever with deciding Harry was gonna be the one to hold her hand on their walk. When Eggsy came back with Sherman ready to go, he saw them and couldn’t help the blinding smile that crossed his face at how cute Daisy’s tiny little hand looked curled into Harry’s large ones. “Ready to go then, Dais?”

“Yes!” she cried excitedly, tugging Harry out the door. “C’mon, Harry! Sherman needs his exercise! Eggsy says I gotta get plenty of exercise, too, just like Sherman, cause being inside all day is bad for you.”

“Yes, Eggsy is very smart, isn’t he?” Harry agreed sagely, as if she were telling him something very important. “Sitting on your backside all day will only make you unhealthy and lazy. And that gets you nowhere, does it, Daisy?”

“Nope! Besides, I like playin’ at the park,” Daisy said eagerly. “Eggsy even lets me jump in puddles when it rains and Dean ain’t home. Dean doesn’t like it when we get wet, but that’s okay, cause we don’t like Dean anyways,” she said matter-of-factly, making Eggsy cringe.

“Daisy,” he chastised. “That ain’t nice.”

“Well nei-ver is Dean!” she defended, giving him a look that dared him to contradict her. Harry bit back a chuckle, earning a glare from Eggsy at his disguised cough-laugh.

“Well, no matter, you still shouldn’t talk that way about your daddy, Daisy,” Harry said mildly after seeing Eggsy’s look.

“Dean ain’t my daddy, Eggsy is,” she said brightly. “He’s my bruva, but he’s my daddy, too.”

Eggsy sighed. “Daisy, I’m not your dad-“

“Yes you are, Eggsy,” she said in a tone that reminded him of their mum when she was done having a conversation. “I don’t like Dean so I don’t want him to be my daddy.”

Harry saw the dejected look on Eggsy’s face and just ruffled Daisy’s hair. “It’s alright, Dear. It would seem he doesn’t deserve to have a daughter like you anyways, so it’s his loss, really.”

Eggsy gave him a grateful smile and Harry winked at him before turning back to pay attention to whatever Daisy had got up to saying next.

~

Eggsy’s phone vibrated and he pulled it out, only to curse internally when the text from his mum read, _Dean’s friends are over. Kicked me out so I’m gonna go visit Charley. Best keep Daisy out a bit longer._

“Something wrong?” Harry asked him as they walked back side by side, Daisy walking up ahead a few steps beside Sherman, talking to him rapidly even though he, being a dog, never replied. 

Eggsy grimaced. “Mum says keep Daisy out a bit longer since Dean’s thugs are at the house and she ain’t there. Daisy’s gotta be gettin’ hungry, though, and I ain’t got no money. There’s food at the house so I didn’t think about bumming some off Mum-“

“Nonsense,” Harry dismissed. “If it’s time for Daisy to eat, we’ll just order takeaway.”

Eggsy gave him a look. “Harry, you don’t have to feed us. It ain’t your job.”

Harry sighed. “Fine then. I’ll just order takeaway just for me when I get home, and if you both happen to eat some, since I seem to be famished and plan to order far more food than I could normally eat, then so be it.”

Eggsy snorted. “You stubborn shit, you ain’t gonna let me stop you, are you?” he asked, and Harry grinned.

“Not at all, Eggsy. Not at all.” He reached out to take Eggsy’s hand, but Eggsy startled a bit, pulling his hand away sharply.

“Harry!” he hissed, looking around in a panic. “Really, Harry, it ain’t alright in public. Any of Dean’s mates might see me, and then-“

“Dean’s mates in Kensington?” Harry asked flatly and Eggsy huffed.

“You don’t know how far they go to rob houses, Bruv,” he said, walking on ahead to walk beside Daisy without another word, leaving Harry behind holding Sherman’s lead with a sad shake of his head.

~

Eggsy back from the toilet only to find Daisy sitting on the counter in front of Harry, who was listening very attentively as she listed what sounded like every food she had ever eaten. “And fish, and pasta, and biscuits and ice cream-“

“And what’re you two up to?” Eggsy asked as he walked over, hands on his hips and eyes narrowed playfully at Daisy.

“Harry’s gonna get food,” Daisy chirruped. 

“Yes, it appears Miss Daisy has quite the appetite,” Harry said with a playfully exaggerated sigh. “We’re just going to have to order one of everything, I guess,” he decided, winking at her. “What first? Pizza or fish and chips? We might actually already have the ice cream here,” he said, going to open the freezer.

Eggsy tutted. “Harry, you are not going to order her all that-“

“Eggsy, we already established that I’m famished and she is only offering suggestions for what I might eat to quell my raging hunger,” he said with a cheeky toss of his chin. “If she has a bit, then that’s fine.” He stopped on his way past Eggsy to place his hands on his hips from behind. “I can buy whatever food I want, can’t I?” he asked, leaning in to kiss Eggsy’s cheek only to have Eggsy subtly slide away.

Eggsy avoided his eyes as he mumbled under his breath, “Not in front of Daisy,” before raising his voice again. “Well, I guess we can’t stop Harry from buying whatever food he wants, now can we, Dais?” he asked, winking at her as he ignored the studious look Harry was giving him. He glanced back at Harry with a smirk. “Make sure that what you want happens to include chicken, because you definitely want some of that,” he said and Harry forced a smile and bowed his head.

“Of course.” He turned and walked out, but Eggsy could hear him speaking under his voice on his way out. “Wouldn’t want to make a phone call in front of Daisy, now would we?”

Eggsy tossed a glare his way, though it went unseen, but deep down, he did feel a bit guilty after seeing the hurt look in Harry’s eyes.

~

Daisy fell asleep with her head on Eggsy’s lap and her feet in Harry’s lap, and Eggsy couldn’t ignore the way that Harry kept absently rubbing at her leg whenever she so much as flinched, automatically soothing her. He watched the way Harry smiled at her when she made a face in her sleep and it warmed him from the inside out to see how clearly taken with her he was. He didn’t even realize he’d been staring until Harry, without looking away from Daisy, whispered, “You’re staring, Eggsy.”

Eggsy blushed but grinned. “You’re so good with her. You sure you ain’t got no kids?” he asked and Harry chuckled softly.

“Trust me, Eggsy, I would know if I did,” he said, then carefully shifted Daisy so he could slide out from under her. “I best clear up,” he answered Eggsy’s silent question.

“Oh, right.” Eggsy carefully shifted Daisy to lay on the sofa and got up, helping Harry gather up the takeaway boxes. True to his word, he’d ordered every single food Daisy had listed and they’d shared it all. Eggsy hated to admit it, but he was pretty sure neither he nor Daisy had had that big of a meal since Christmas, and even then, that was only because they’d been invited over to Eggsy’s mate’s gran’s house to join them since she didn’t have anybody else besides the three of them. He knew he’d never been able to buy Daisy that much food, and for the most part, he couldn’t rely on his mum or Dean to remember to buy food for them.

Eggsy didn’t even realize he’d finished putting boxes in the refrigerator and was just standing there until Harry came up behind him and touched his hip gently. “Eggsy? Are you alright?”

Eggsy turned, shutting the door quickly. “Yeah, yeah, just thinking.” 

Harry curled both hands around Eggsy’s hips, drawing him in. “Thinking about what?”

Eggsy bit his lip, nervously looking towards the doorway. “Maybe I should go check on Dais-“

“Eggsy, she’s asleep,” Harry encouraged. He shook him by the hips gently. “Why are you so uncomfortable with me touching you all of a sudden?” he asked, not bothering to fuck around about it. Honestly, it was one of the things Eggsy liked best about him.

Eggsy swallowed hard, meeting Harry’s eyes. “Cause Daisy makes it real, Harry.” He gave into the invitation Harry offered him and stepped into his space, curling his arms around Harry’s middle, tucking his head under Harry’s chin. “Having her around, it just-“ He groaned in frustration at his inability to say what he meant. “Harry, being with you… it’s like a dream. It don’t feel like it’s my life, sometimes.” He drew back some, looking up into his eyes. “I come here, I’ve got a fuckin’ gorgeous posh bloke nearly old enough to be my dad that came into my life out of nowhere and showed me what it’s like to feel important and to be able to be weak for once, and you always make me feel safe and looked after.” He shook his head. “But I go home, and it’s like goin’ back to reality after living in a fantasy. I’m back to working at a fast food restaurant to be able to buy _food_ for my five year old sister, who I share a bedroom with, who I take care of, who I’ve basically raised by myself, because my stepdad is an abusive thug and my mum’s too far gone to even save herself for the good of her five year old daughter.” He gave Harry a hopeless look. “It don’t feel like I should be here, right now, when Daisy is in the next room. I should be the provider, the defender, the caregiver. I should be Eggsy stuck in the cycle of shit we all live in my neighborhood. I shouldn’t be in a kitchen the size of my whole flat being held by you.”

Harry reached up, stroking a hand over the back of Eggsy’s head. “Eggsy, this is real life. Not a fantasy. You don’t have to feel so out of sorts over someone caring for you.”

“But that is the fantasy,” Eggsy said with a sad smile. “Real life don’t include being cared for in my experience.”

Harry made a sad sound, unable to hold it in, and leaned in to kiss Eggsy tenderly and then pull him entirely into his arms, cradling him against his body like Eggsy was too precious to even handle too roughly. Eggsy didn’t know how long they stood there, but it could’ve been forever and it still wouldn’t be long enough. 

~

Harry walked Eggsy to the door and held it open for him, since Eggsy was carrying a sleeping Daisy in his arms. “You really should just stay. It’s very late. Is the tube even running this late?”

“Yeah, it’s alright,” Eggsy said quietly. He grinned up at Harry. “Besides, what the hell’s gonna happen to me here? An old bird call the police cause they think I kidnapped Daisy?” He tilted his head up and Harry leaned in to peck his lips.

“Goodnight, Eggsy,” he said, then turned and pressed a small kiss to Daisy’s hair. “Goodnight, Miss Daisy,” he whispered in her ear, and Eggsy brightened up.

“You’re too fuckin’ perfect, you know that?” he asked, shaking his head. “It just ain’t fair, you,” he said, waving a bit. “Bye, Harry,” he said as he backed away from the door and Harry just nodded to him and watched Eggsy walk on until he disappeared from sight.

~

When Eggsy got home from work, he planned to get Daisy and go see Harry and walk Sherman together with her. He got home and made straight for his room, not even stopping to talk to his mum. He had barely got out of his uniform shirt when his mum knocked on his open door, leaning against the wall. “What’s got you all excited, then?” she asked, and he shrugged as he dug out a clean shirt.

“Nothin’. Just going to walk Roxy’s dog. Figured I’d take Daisy with me. She likes dogs so she gets on with him pretty welly,” he said, tugging his shirt on.

Michelle nodded, watching him kick off his work shoes and find some sneakers. “Who’s this Harry bloke she mentioned?” she asked. “Mate of yours?”

Eggsy stilled for a moment, but covered it up by finding his shoes. “Yeah, sort of,” he said, sitting on his bed to put them on, avoiding her eyes. “Roxy’s uncle is stayin’ at her house while she’s away. He’s real nice to Daisy so she likes him.” Michelle didn’t say anything for a bit so he looked up once his shoes were on. “What?” he asked, leaning back on his hands. “Mum, he ain’t a paedophile or somethin’. I wouldn’t take Daisy around a creep.” He rolled his eyes as he stood up and she just looked at him for the longest. He felt a bit of panic rising as she just looked at him, not saying a word, or reacting in any way. “Mum?” he asked in a smaller voice.

She looked him over as she pushed away from the wall and walked up to him. She reached up and combed his fringe with her fingers, then touched his face lightly. “You’re a good man, Eggsy. You ain’t no little boy anymore, and you ain’t been for a long time,” she said, stroking a thumb along the ridge of his cheekbone. “You do so much for your sister and I know how much it costs you.” She gave him a sad smile that scared him more than anything. “I don’t know what I’d do if anything happened to you.” She curled both hands around the sides of his neck, pulling him down so she could kiss his face. “You’re my little boy no matter what.” She hugged him, stroking his hair. “I love you so much, Eggsy,” she said in a small, strangled tone like she was going to cry.

Eggsy fought the wave of panic that wanted to overtake him and he turned to kiss the side of her head. “I love you too, Mum. You know that.”

When she pulled away, she nodded. “Just- just be careful when you go out, Eggsy.”

Eggsy forced a chuckle. “Mum, I’m going to Kensington,” he said and she smiled sadly and nodded.

“Yeah, I know you are.” She backed up, rubbing her hands on her jeans. “Well, I ain’t gonna keep you. You and Daisy got a dog to walk and all.” She turned and left the room, and Eggsy took a moment to thoroughly have a mental breakdown as his brain repeated the same thing over and over.

 _She knows_.

~

Daisy and Harry had so much fun running around the house with Sherman, who had stolen Daisy’s shoe, that Eggsy couldn’t bear to share his fears with Harry. He didn’t want Harry to stop smiling and laughing while he played with Daisy. It was too precious of a sight for Eggsy to ruin.

~

The sunlight shining through the window highlighted every dip and curve of Eggsy’s bare back. Harry’s eyes were drawn to the moles and speckles all over his body, including a very adorable spot right at the top of his bum. “You give me the strangest urge to play connect the dots,” Harry announced and Eggsy snorted, rolling his eyes.

“You dirty bugger,” he teased, smiling as he lifted his head off his folded arms to look Harry over. “It just ain’t fair you got abs like that, Harry,” he said, looking over Harry’s middle.

Harry just rolled his eyes. “I only have abs at this exact angle, trust me. Any other time I’m just thin.” 

Eggsy hummed, resting his face against his forearm. “Wish I could draw you just like that. You’re absolutely beautiful.”

“Actually,” Harry said, glancing at the table by the window. “You never did get your sketch book that day you brought it over.” He nodded to the line of books stood between bookends and Eggsy saw, sure enough, his sketchbook. “I could fetch it for you,” he offered and Eggsy grinned.

“Nah, I’ve got better ideas than drawin’ anyhow,” he said, getting up to his hands and knees. He crawled slowly over to Harry and slung a leg over his lap, settling on Harry’s thighs. Eggsy took Harry’s hands and pulled them back around his middle as he leaned in, meeting Harry in a warm, unhurried kiss. Harry’s hands slid up the panes of his back while Eggsy rested his on Harry’s bare chest, neither of them rushing the kiss in the slightest. There was no need to rush anything, nonetheless sweet kisses. Harry’s hands started to wander further down and Eggsy squeaked a bit when he abruptly grabbed his bum with both hands and squeezed. “Oi! Stop being a dirty old man,” he teased, winking as he plucked at a curl. “Here I am, givin’ you slow, lazy snogging, and you go and cop a feel.”

Harry gave his flattest, most nonchalant expression when he spoke. “Blame your arse, it shouldn’t be the perfect size for my hands if it doesn’t want them there.”

Eggsy giggled slightly, shaking his head. “It don’t mind in the least, but I ain’t really planning on fucking again right now, so stop giving me ideas.”

“Pity, I love giving you ideas,” Harry practically purred, using his hold on Eggsy’s ass to tug him further up his body, allowing him to get his mouth on Eggsy’s nipple. Eggsy groaned, clutching at the back of Harry’s head, tugging his hair a bit as Harry trailed his lips from his nipple up to his throat, which made Eggsy gasp and whimper.

“ _Harry_ ,” he moaned, tossing his head back. “God, you fuckin’ know just how to touch me, you shit. Fuuuuuuuck.”

“That is rather the idea-“ Harry stopped abruptly, jerking back. “Did you hear something.”

Eggsy frowned, looking down at him. “Wha? I ain’t-“ He stopped when he, too, heard a tapping sound. “What is that-“ 

The unmistakable sound of the front door opening was followed immediately by Sherman starting barking like mad. Eggsy sat back on Harry’s knees, looking at the door, about to ask Harry who else had a key, when his unasked question was answered. “That’s my good boy! Awwww you missed me, didn’t you?!”

Harry and Eggsy jerked to look at one another in wide-eyed panic. “Roxy!” they hissed at the same time, then both made a mad scramble to get out of bed, which only ended in them tangling together with the blankets and falling off onto the floor with a loud thud and a groan of pain.

“Harry?” Roxy called, having clearly heard the sound. They scrambled with the sheets as her feet pounded up the door, and Eggsy managed to extricate himself just in time for Harry to jump up, dragging the sheets around his body while Eggsy laid on the floor, bare ass naked, praying Roxy didn’t try and come round where she’d see him. The door opened after a soft knock, but Roxy quickly gasped and covered her eyes. “Harry! Shit, sorry!” She hesitated. “You alright? I heard a bang.”

“Yes-yes. Quite alright. You coming in just scared me into falling out of bed.” He looked down at his body and grimaced. “It was warm last night so I sort of didn’t bother with pajamas. I do apologize,” he said and she just nodded, hand still over her eyes.

“Sorry for scaring you. I’ll let you get dressed while I go put on some tea, then.”

Harry cleared his throat and nodded. “That sounds lovely. You can tell me why you’re home early, as I’m sure there’s a story there.”

“Oh you bet there is,” Roxy said, turning to walk out. “I’ll have the tea on when you get down,” she said as she tugged the door shut behind her.

Eggsy let out a heavy sigh of relief. “Fuck that was close.”

Harry snorted, looking down at him with an amused smirk. “The real question, Darling, is how you’re going to get out of here unseen, if that is your plan like I assume.”

Eggsy sat up and stared at the door in disbelief. “Shiiiiiiit.”

~

Eggsy still had thorns in his palms after attempting (and mostly managing) to scale down the rose plants climbing up to Roxy’s bathroom window that morning when he showed up ‘officially’ to walk Sherman. 

Roxy answered the door and Eggsy felt genuine relief at seeing his best mate after so long. “Bout damn time you got home, Rox!” he said, tugging her into a hug so tight he ended up picking her up and spinning in the front hall. “Grrrr I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you, too,” she said, beaming after he dropped her back to her feet. “God it feels like _ages_ , not weeks!”

“I know, right?” Eggsy said, slinging an arm around her shoulders as they walked into the living room. “Me and Sherman’s good mates now, though. We came to an understandin’ that Daisy is our favorite person, so we got something in common.”

Roxy grinned. “And you and my uncle seem to be pretty close, too,” she said, and Eggsy covered his start by falling back onto the couch the same time Roxy did, both of them bouncing a bit.

“Yeah, yeah. Harry’s pretty cool for a posh old bloke,” he agreed. “Daisy likes him, and she’s a good judge of character.”

Roxy nodded casually. “And your cap was hanging on the post of the guest bed,” she mentioned as if she were just commenting on the weather. Eggsy froze up, looking at her fearfully. He tried to think of anything to say, any explanation, but Roxy just snickered, shoving him. “Honestly, Eggsy. Don’t look so worried. I’m not going to ask you about your sex life when it involves my _uncle_ ,” she stressed.

Eggsy groaned, sliding down in the seat. “Shit, Rox, you can’t mention it to nobody-“

“Oh fuck off, like I’m going to go talk to your mum about you fucking my uncle,” she argued with a wave of her hand. “I haven’t a problem with you liking a man, Eggsy. I’ve got two fathers, that’d be pretty shit of me-“

“Rox I mean _nobody_ ,” he stressed.

“And while I am pretty annoyed you didn’t think I’d be alright knowing you like men, I’m willing to overlook it-“

“Roxy, please,” he said in a brittle tone that finally made her stop. She looked at him in surprise and he shook his head. “ _Nobody_ can know. I’ve fucked up enough letting Daisy catch on, I think. I think she has, anyhow. She ain’t said nothin’, but I’ve got reasons to suspect-“

“Eggsy,” she said gently. “She’s five. And loves you. What does it matter?”

“Because it _does_!” he argued. “Roxy, I can’t be gay! Doesn’t matter if I am, I _can’t_! Harry knows ain’t nothing that can leave this house, behind closed doors. That’s it. Outside these four walls, I ain’t nothing, ya hear?” he all but pleaded.

Roxy gave him a more closed off, resolved look. “Fine, we’ll just pretend it’s all same as always.” She stood up, but stopped. “Look, I love you like a brother, Eggsy, but if that’s the way it is, don’t fuck with Harry, alright? The last man he gave a shit about broke his heart, and it just isn’t fair for you to do the same goddamn thing.”

Eggsy sat there for a moment. “I- I can still take Sherman out if you want-“

“Fuck off, Eggsy,” Roxy said, clearly angry at him for the way he was treating Harry.

Deep down, Eggsy knew the same as she did that it wasn’t fair. But there weren’t nothing he could do about that. It had to be that way.

~

Harry was still looking for a place to live, as he had been all the while watching Roxy’s house, so Eggsy and Daisy had been helping him look through the ads for houses whenever they were over. Because of that, when Harry asked Eggsy if he knew where a street was, he assumed he was asking about the location of a prospective house or flat.

“Yeah, that’s a real posh neighborhood. Fuckin’ mansions and shit,” he said, giving Harry a grin. “Bit rich even for you, Harry.”

Harry hummed. “Roxy’s parents have asked me to attend a charity event at some old acquaintance’s home. It would do me good to socialize a bit, I guess. I’m becoming an old hermit.”

Eggsy grinned, looking up at Harry from his spot sitting on the floor, drawing Sherman and Roxy where they lay sleeping together on the couch. “Very true. Even I get out more than you, and I have a real job,” he joked. 

Harry hummed. “You and your fellow hoodie wearing youths go drink at the local pub, I don’t really think that’s my sort of socializing.” He sighed. “Maybe I should take up gardening and join a club of some sort.”

“Oh no,” Eggsy groaned. “You’re really sounding old now.” He leaned to the side, bumping his head against Harry’s knee. “You should go write at a coffee shop or somethin’. Make friends with the other middle-aged brainy types.” He shrugged. “Or do like my mum and go get your nails done,” he teased.

Harry held out a hand. “I would look rather fetching with glittery blue nails,” he mused and Eggsy snickered.

“Not sure how well that’d go over with the Chester Kings of the world at your ‘charity event’,” he commented.

Harry eyed him with a sudden smile. “Come with me.”

“To get my fingernails painted? Nah, I’ll pass, thanks. Daisy paints my toes as it is,” he said, and Harry reached out, catching his chin to turn Eggsy to face him. Eggsy raised an eyebrow and Harry slid his fingers to stroke his hair off his face.

“You’d look marvelous in a suit, I think,” he said, turning his head. “A bit of product in your gorgeous hair and you’d put us all to shame.”

Eggsy rolled his eyes. “Oh get off.”

“No, honestly,” Harry said with a warm smile. “Come with me. At least then if it’s a total bore, I can admire your beauty to cut the dullness of the evening.”

Eggsy gave him a look as if he were mad. “Harry, do you think I own a suit? Or even a tie for that matter?”

Harry shrugged. “That can be fixed-“

“I am not letting you spend that kind of money on me, Harry,” Eggsy said in a warning tone. “I might let you buy me food, but a _suit_ is a whole other thing.”

“And why not?” Harry asked in a calm tone. “Roxy can get me a good discount, she can negate the fitting cost by measuring you herself, and most of all, I _want_ to. It’s my money to spend how I like, isn’t it?”

Eggsy gave him a stern look. “Yeah, and I can refuse to let it be on me,” he said with a hint of finality.

Harry sighed, retracting his hand. He didn’t say anything else as he picked up his tablet and went back to sitting in silence. Eggsy felt a small rush of annoyance at Harry for not even saying anything, but he just ignored it and went back to sketching Roxy in spite of the tension he now carried in his shoulders.

~

Eggsy had been spending a few nights per week with Harry lately, so it wasn’t odd for him to go more than 24 hours without being home. His mum didn’t seem to mind, and Daisy wasn’t entirely dependent on him, Mum was able to look after her for the most part. Because of this, Eggsy was shocked into dropping his keys when he let himself into the flat only to hear Daisy crying. He followed the sound to the other bedroom and saw Michelle sitting on the bed rocking Daisy. 

“Dais? What’s wrong?” he asked, and Daisy looked up, gasping.

“Eggsy!” she cried, scrambling out of her mum’s hold into Eggsy’s waiting arms. He picked her up and held her and she sobbed. “Mum’s hurt,” she cried into his shoulder and Eggsy looked up, walking around the bed to look her in the face, eyes widening when he saw the bruises along the side of her jaw.

Eggsy clenched his jaw so hard his teeth hurt. “Where is he?” he demanded and she shook her head, smiling.

“I’m alright-“

“You are not!” He reached out, pushing her hair from her face, only to hate himself a little when she automatically flinched on instinct. He dropped his hand, throat tightening. “Mum…”

She stood up and shook her head. “I’m fine, Eggsy. It’s not even that bad,” she dismissed. She smiled, rubbing at his upper arm. “At least you weren’t home this time. He’s always worse on you than me,” she said, leaning up to kiss his cheek before going on her way past, disappearing into the bathroom.

Eggsy closed his eyes, pressing his lips together hard enough to make sure no sounds came out as he clung tighter to Daisy. He couldn’t cry when she needed him. He knew she’d just be more scared than she already was. He carried her to their room, rubbing her back soothingly. “He didn’t hurt you, did he?” he asked and Daisy shook her head, rubbing her teary, snotty face against his shoulder.

“I was asleep and then I woke up and Mummy’s face looked really bad!” Daisy cried. She pulled back and looked at his face, and he frowned when she touched his cheeks and forehead.

“Daisy, what’re you doin?”

“Makin’ sure Dean didn’t hurt you, too,” she said and Eggsy was torn between feeling the most intense love for how sweet his baby sister as and absolutely broken on the inside that his _five year old sister_ had to live with a fucking bastard like Dean hurting the people she loved.

“I weren’t here, remember,” he reminded her, ignoring the waves of guilt sweeping through him because, no, he _wasn’t_ there. “Wish I had been,” he grumbled. “I’d have made sure he didn’t hurt her.”

“No, Eggsy!” she said quickly. “Mummy said it’s good you was gone, cause he’d hurt you more than her,” she said, repeating what Michelle had said earlier. She patted his face. “It’s good you stay away a lot so Dean ain’t around you.”

Eggsy closed his eyes and hugged Daisy close, fighting the overwhelming urge to cry. He wasn’t sure what was worse, Dean, or the guilt that was attempting to swallow him whole.

~

After Daisy calmed down, Eggsy went down to find Dean at the pub, and he knew it was a stupid idea, but his mum’s face and his sister’s fear was more than enough to really make him not care. When he found Dean, Dean didn’t even let his mates do anything but watch and laugh when Eggsy tried to punch him and Dean caught his wrist, twisted it, and punched him in the eye hard enough to knock him to the pavement. 

Eggsy used to get in fights a lot, but he’d lost his touch. Not to mention, Dean was a hell of a lot bigger than him. His only saving grace was that Dean seemed more interested in going inside and laughing at the whole ordeal with his mates than doing anything worse to Eggsy, so Eggsy was able to get up and drag himself back home feeling disgusted, guilty, and foolish all at the same time.

Most of all, he felt helpless, and that scared the shit out of him.

~

“What on earth happened to you?!” 

Eggsy ducked his head when Roxy opened the door and saw his face. “Hey, Rox.”

She sighed. “Harry is going to shit when he sees that,” she said, smiling sadly. “And he has good news, too.” Roxy stepped back to let him inside and Eggsy kept his head down so he could warn Harry before he saw his face.

“Eggsy? I was starting to worry. I called twice yesterday and never could get you,” Harry said, and Eggsy heard him coming down the stairs. “Eggsy?”

“Erm, don’t freak out, alright?” Eggsy said, then slowly lifted his head to look at Harry.

Harry’s eyes widened and he practically fell down the rest of the stairs. “Eggsy!” he gasped, rushing over to catch his face in his hands, gently holding it with hands carefully removed from the bruises. “Fuck, what happened?” he asked, ever so gently brushing a fingertip along the healing cut on his cheekbone. 

Eggsy sighed. “What do you think, Harry. It was Dean.” He shrugged. “My fault anyways. I tried to punch him-“

“Why on earth did you do that?” Harry asked and Eggsy huffed.

“Because he hit my fuckin’ mum and scared the shit out of Daisy.” He pulled his face out of Harry’s grasp. “Anyways, Rox said you had good news?” he prompted.

Harry smiled sadly. “Yes, I did.” He curled his hand around Eggsy’s hip, smiling down at him. “I now own a house.”

Eggsy brightened up. “Oh yeah? That’s great! No more livin’ in Roxy’s guestroom then.” He leaned in and pecked his lips. “I’d say this calls for celebration.” He turned to Roxy. “Wanna go out with us? Get a pint? Celebrate you not havin’ to listen to us fuck next door anymore?” he said with a cheeky wink that made her mime gagging.

“Thank God I don’t actually do that,” she said, then shook her head. “No, you two go on. I’ve got a lot to catch up on still. I’ve mostly just sat around since I got back, but I’ve got to get back to work tomorrow.”

Harry nodded. “Well, if you change your mind, there’s this lovely pub just up the street that I think we’ll be going to,” he said, glancing at Eggsy to confirm, and Eggsy grinned and nodded.

“Sure thing, Harry.”

~

Eggsy had had a few pints, not just the one, and he felt pretty shit about going out at all. All he could think about, after a few drinks calmed him down, was how Daisy was at home without him, again, and Dean could be out drinking a shitload more than he had and come home angry again. Here he was, walking with Harry, rather than where he was supposed to be, taking care of his baby sister.

“Eggsy, are you alright?” Harry asked, sliding his hand into Eggsy’s.

Eggsy snatched his hand away. “Harry,” he said, giving him a warning look.

Harry sighed, rolling his eyes. “Eggsy, it’s nighttime, far away from anywhere anyone might see-“

“Don’t fuckin’ act like this is new, Harry,” Eggsy argued. “I’ve got a damn good reason to be fuckin’ careful, don’t I?” he asked, gesturing to the damage Dean had did to his face. “This is cause he was pissed and he lost a bet and came home angry, hit mum, and I retaliated, Harry, imagine what he’d do if he found out I’m suckin’ your cock?” he asked and Harry made a face.

“Thank you for being so very crass, Eggsy, I can always count on you,” he droned, and Eggsy saw the playfulness in his eyes, but Eggsy was trying to make Harry understand.

“Harry,” he said firmly, stopping walking. “I would fucking _die_ , do you get me?” he asked seriously, jaw tight. “This ain’t some ‘oh no, I’m embarrassed’ bullshit, it’s my fucking _life_. Maybe one day I won’t have to be scared of my stepfather beating me to death for holding your hand, but until then, maybe lay off it?” he asked.

Harry sighed heavily. “Eggsy, I’m not trying to upset you,” he said in a softer tone. “You think I’m not every bit as upset as I could be that you come to me looking like that? You think it doesn’t terrify me that your stepfather did that to you? I hate it.” He and Eggsy started walking again after a moment of silence from each of them before Harry spoke again. “You should come live with me,” he said out of absolutely nowhere.

Eggsy’s eyebrows flew up and he looked at him so fast his neck popped. “I what?”

“You should come and live with me,” Harry repeated. “It is early in our relationship, I know,” he said earnestly. “But if you want, my new house has a guest room, you don’t have to _live_ with me, you can be like a roommate. I’d prefer to think of it as living together, but I understand if you don’t,” he said quickly. “Obviously you don’t have to pay for anything at all, I would take care of everything.”

Eggsy stared at him blankly before spluttering. “Harry, what the fuck?!”

Harry gave him a look. “And what is your other option? Just stay with that bastard-“

“Harry, I can’t leave my family just because I got punched in the face,” he argued. “I can’t leave my mum-“

“Eggsy, your mother chose to stay with him after he started hurting you and then her, she obviously isn’t going to change her mind anytime soon,” Harry said firmly. “I know it hurts to hear, but you cannot leave yourself in that position for a woman who made her choices and clearly isn’t ready to change her situation.”

Eggsy gave a frustrated sighed. “I know she’s not. I don’t know if she ever will be.”

Harry nodded. “Which is even more reason for you to let me help you-“

Eggsy couldn’t help his outburst, no matter how much it clearly startled Harry. “People don't just give people things like this, nobody does anything without expecting something in return!”

Harry scoffed. “Yes they do, all the time, people do things for others because they feel like it.”

“Maybe in YOUR life and in YOUR world, but in the real world it isn't like that,” Eggsy argued, “Real life ain’t like that, Harry!”

“Everybody is allowed to indulge in luxuries when offered them-“

“And nobody fuckin’ offers for nothing!” Eggsy argued. “Jesus, this is the real world, Harry. Real life! I’ve got responsibilities and a job-“

“And you don’t need it!” Harry argued. “Eggsy, I’m offering to use every privilege you keep throwing in my face to take care of you, to provide everything you could ever need, why won’t you let me?!”

Eggsy gave him an angry glare, barely holding in every wave of contempt washing over him. “I may not have much, but I've got enough dignity that I won’t be nobody's kept boy.”

“For fucks sake,” Harry growled. “You would not be my fucking ‘kept boy’, Eggsy. I swear, you talk about your mother not being ready to change her situation, but obviously you aren’t either if you think I’m belittling you by trying to offer you help-“

“BECAUSE YOU ARE!” Eggsy shouted, throwing his hands up. “You are treating me like a damsel in distress! I don’t get to just fuck off to live with you and let you take care of me like that! In real life, you keep your head down, you work hard, you save up, you fuckin’ look after your family, and one day, after doin’ all that, I can get Daisy out of that place-“

“Eggsy,” Harry interrupted. “I am not telling you to give up your sense of pride-“

“I am NOT your fucking kept boy, Harry, I will not be one!”

“Eggsy, you will NEVER get ANYWHERE unless you let someone fucking help you, you’re being so fucking difficult when you know damn well you will never amount to ANYTHING in your current life!” Harry snapped at him. “I can help you-“

“Fuck you,” Eggsy choked out, eyes filling with tears. “You think I don’t know that?!” he asked, voice strained. “You think I don’t KNOW that where I’m at, I won’t ever fucking get out of it?! I know that, Harry! But I accepted it a long time ago. I’m nothing. I’ll never be anything but nothing. I can fucking try to do it myself, though,” he said a bit stronger. “I don’t give a fuck what you think, or what Roxy things, or what Dean thinks, but YOU are a fucking fantasy, Harry!” He gestured around him. “All of this is a fucking fantasy! You know damn well you don’t want me! Not for good! Why the fuck should you?! I’m just a pretty face, Harry. What the fuck would you do with me?” he asked, getting up in his face. “Honestly,” he said, hitting his own chest. “What are you gonna do with me? What use am I to you? A pretty boy to fuck? Yeah, sure. But I’m too young, I’m not much more than a pretty face, and I’d be an all-around embarrassment to you in the eyes of your peers. I’m just some middle age fantasy of yours, Harry,” he finished weakly, voice cracking on Harry’s name. “You don’t love me, so there isn’t a single goddamn reason for you to want to have me as anything but a kept boy the way you’re talking about.”

Harry gave him a haunted look. “You really think so little of me?” he asked, shaking his head silently. 

“Ain’t nothing to do with thinking, Harry,” he said simply. “It just is.” 

Eggsy knew that there was no confusion left between them when he turned and walked away, leaving Harry standing on the pavement alone while he disappeared into the night. 

~

Daisy looked up from coloring in the drawing Eggsy drew her and tilted her head to the side. “Eggsy? When’re we gonna go see Harry again?” she asked innocently, and Eggsy had to swallow down the lump in his throat.

He coughed lightly. “We ain’t gonna be seein’ him no more, Dais.”

“But why?” she asked, looking confused and sad.

Eggsy reached out and curled his hand around her shoulder. “Ya know how he was stayin’ at Roxy’s house?” Daisy nodded. “Well he bought a house of his own and he don’t live there no more. We can still go see Roxy, though,” he said and she nodded before letting out a sigh.

“I really like Harry,” she said dejectedly and Eggsy forced a smile, afraid he might cry if he didn’t.

“Me, too, Love. Me, too.”

~

Eggsy was helping Roxy chop veg for a salad while Daisy played with Sherman in the floor when she put down the knife she had and looked up. “Oh, I forgot,” she said as she walked out of the kitchen. Eggsy looked at Daisy, who gave him a confused look, and he shrugged, grinning.

“Guess Rox ain’t got a memory worth nothin’,” he teased and Daisy giggled, going back to petting Sherman. 

When Roxy came back, she slid something across the counter towards him, and he nearly dropped his knife when he jerked some. She gave a sad little look. “Found that. You never did take it home,” she said, and he wiped off his hands before shakily reaching out to pick up his sketchbook. “I think he almost kept it, but knew that it wasn’t his to keep.”

Eggsy’s chest _hurt_ when he opened it to the latest page he’d drawn on, and saw the little stick figure Harry had drawn to ‘show off his own skill’. He closed the book quickly and put it aside, nodding to Roxy. “Thanks,” he said softly and she smiled sadly.

“I wrote his address in there. If you ever wanna go visit. See the new house.” Eggsy glanced up in annoyance and she tossed her head nonchalantly. “Just in case you want,” she said, circling back around to get back to chopping the vegetables.

~

Dean came home stone sober and mad as fuck, and all Eggsy could think was that he was glad that Daisy had gone to play with one of the neighbors kids. Dean had never hit him totally sober before, and he had never once thought it would be _worse_ when Dean wasn’t too drunk to aim right, even if it all made sense now that he’d did it.

Hindsight, and all that. 

By the time Michelle got home from dropping Daisy off, Dean had gone again and Eggsy had cleaned himself up. He didn’t get him in the face but once, all the rest had been punches to his body, so he didn’t worry about scaring her when she walked into his room and saw him lying on his bed, even though it still hurt to move.

She took one look at his busted lip that he’d taken care of himself and shook her head. “Babes, this has to stop,” she said with guilt in her voice as she sat down beside his hip. He wiggled over some on the narrow bed to make room for her and she turned to reach out, carefully brushing her fingers through his hair. 

“It ain’t your fault,” he murmured, and she shook her head.

“Don’t try and do that, Eggsy.” She stroked a finger across his scarred eyebrow from one of the worst beatings Dean ever gave him, back when he weren’t but about fifteen. He’d had to have stitches and stay in hospital for a night. She met his eyes and Eggsy realized that she looked so much older in that moment than she ever had before. “I did this to you, Eggsy,” she said, voice brittle as tears filled her eyes.

“Mum-“

“I did,” she countered. “I brought you into this. I let him hurt you, and I still do. The only time he ever hits me is when I try and defend you,” she admitted and Eggsy’s heart sank, because he hadn’t ever suspected that. “He’ll start off about you and I’ll argue with him because I know when he gets to goin’, the cogs start turnin’, and more than likely, he’s gonna hurt you next time he sees you.”

Eggsy tried to sit up. “Mum, why would you do that, why-“

She put a hand on his chest, holding him back. “I am your mother,” she said simply. “I ain’t a good one,” she said weakly. “I know that. I’m a horrible mum, but for all I’m bad at, the one thing I’m good at is loving you, Eggsy.” She bit her lip, a tear slipping from her eyelashes. “You’re my little boy,” she whimpered. “And I let him hurt you.” Her breath hitched and she shook her head. “God, your dad would have my skin for what all I’ve done to you.”

Eggsy’s lip trembled before he could stop it, biting it hard enough his split lip burned with pain. His mum never talked about his dad. He could count on one hand how many times she’d mentioned him since he died twenty years ago. Eggsy could barely even remember his dad, he’d been so small. He knew he’d talked to Daisy more about his dad than his mum had talked about him to anybody. Honestly, he hadn’t ever thought about what his dad would think about his life. It hadn’t ever mattered to think about the ‘what if’s when the ‘how it is’ was so hard most of the time. He didn’t even realize he’d absentmindedly tugged his dad’s medal from under his shirt to fiddle with it until Michelle’s eyes flicked to it and she smiled.

“I didn’t even know you still had that,” she said, reaching out to take it, rubbing a thumb over the face. “Do you even remember him, Eggsy?” 

He nodded. “A bit. I wasn’t much older than Daisy, though.” He smiled weakly. “I remember he would read to me sometimes.”

Michelle nodded, smiling. “He did. Whenever he was home he’d read you to sleep every night.” She looked at the medal, her smile going from nostalgic to just plain sad. “I really miss your dad, Eggsy. All the damn time,” she confessed in a voice barely above a whisper. “He was such a good man. Good husband, good dad.” She reached up to wipe the tears off her face. “God, when I got pregnant with you I thought, ‘well there you go, Michelle, single mum on the dole, what a stereotype you are’, but instead your dad wanted to get married and be a proper family. And I was so happy,” she whispered, looking down at him. “You, me, and your dad, we had it good. Now look at me?” She scoffed. “I’m worse off than that and I dragged you down with me.”

Eggsy forced a smile. “It ain’t all bad. I mean Daisy’s pretty fuckin’ good, yeah?” he said, and Michelle laughed wetly, nodding. Eggsy looked her over and swallowed thickly, asking the question he’d wanted to ask since she mentioned his dad. “Did you love him? My dad?” he asked softly and she nodded mutely, tears filling her eyes again.

“I loved Lee so much.” She let out a half-sob, nodding vigorously. “God, if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have ever let myself get so damn lost, I don’t think. He was the best thing to ever happen to me.” Eggsy sat up in spite of her resistance and hugged her, unable to let her just sit there crying. She didn’t cry for long, just however long it took to get herself back under control, but he hugged her the whole time. When she finally pulled away, pushing him to lie back down, she gently felt of his ribs, taking note of when he flinched and he could tell she was checking to make sure he hadn’t hurt himself further by moving. She winced when he flinched and spoke up. He could tell she was trying to distract him but he let her. “You know, I notice you don’t ever stay out anymore,” she said, and he flushed. She gave a teasing grin. “What happened to that, then?”

He shook his head. “Ain’t nothing.”

“Shame,” she said, the teasing gone from her voice. He looked up and saw a deeper meaning in her eyes. “From what little Daisy said, Harry seems like a good man,” she said and Eggsy’s throat closed up.

“Mum, it’s not-“

“Oh c’mon, Eggsy,” she said, giving up feeling of his ribs to catch his hand. “You were so happy all of a sudden. Always cheerful, always excited about something.” She chuckled weakly. “I was so happy to see you getting out more and living a better life. All this?” She gestured around his shared room with Daisy. “This ain’t how you should be living, Eggsy. You’re too smart, and to good to suffer my fuck ups for this long.” She gave a bitter smile. “I was scared shitless about what Dean might do, but it’s almost worse seein’ all that joy gone again. You were so happy for such a short time.”

Eggsy didn’t even realize how fucking sad he’d been since then until he saw how badly his mother hurt to see all his happiness gone. He only knew it as ‘normal’, not ‘sad’. “God, Mum.” He gritted out, stomach twisting painfully. “I fucked up so bad,” he whimpered, shutting his eyes against the tears gathering. He didn’t wanna cry, not when he needed to be strong for his mum, but it was so _much_. “I didn’t even know I could be happy like that.”

She shushed him. “Oh Eggsy. What happened, then? If you were so happy, what changed.”

He snorted wetly. “I blamed him, but God, I was just so fuckin’ scared,” he admitted for the first time even to himself. “He’s rich and posh and older and he kept doing things for me and offering me so much and never wanting anything from me and it scared the shit out of me.” He shook his head. “It ain’t normal, it just ain’t. Why would he be so kind? He didn’t get anything out of it! Why would he be so kind to me and to Daisy just because?” He gritted his teeth. “I just don’t understand why he thinks life can just be like that. I’ve been livin’ for twenty-seven years and I ain’t ever seen anybody give something and not want something in return. Good people exist, but there’s a limit to kindness.” He swallowed hard. “Or that’s what I told myself. It’s what I _thought_.” He looked up, eyes shining as he met his mum’s gaze. “Now I think I just fucked up the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“What’d you do?” she asked gently, allowing him to go on without prodding.

Eggsy sniffed, shaking his head with a humorless laugh. “After Dean hit me and I showed up with all them bruises on my face, he asked me to move in with him, and when I was like ‘what the fuck’ he went on about how I didn’t have to _live with him_ like that, I could stay in the other bedroom and just be like a roommate until I felt like our relationship was to the right point for it to really be ‘living together’.” He shook his head. “Who does that, though? I think I know now he really, genuinely just wanted to keep me safe, but who opens their home like that? For free, mind you. No rent, no buyin’ my own food, nothing,” he pointed out.

She nodded. “Alright, then what’d you say that you think messed it all up?” she asked gently.

He looked up at her with a heartbroken glint to his eyes. “I told him I’m not anybody’s kept boy, not even his, because I just couldn’t understand _why_ he’d want me to live with him. It weren’t that long we were together! He’s older, and his entire life is so different from me. I just couldn’t understand why, apart from being a hot, young fuck, he’d want me in his life just like that.” He shook his head. “Shit, I still don’t _really_ understand, but I’ve come to realize that, looking back, he’s just that good a person. He’s so kind and generous and of fuckin’ course he’d be that big-hearted. Shit, he never minded when I bought my _baby sister_ on our ‘dates’ since I had to watch her and still wanted to see him. He fucking encouraged it. He thought she was the best thing, you know?” He shook his head. “Of course I go and accuse the kindest man in the world of being an ignorant arsehole who would get tired of me sooner or later.”

Michelle brushed his hair back from his face, trailing her knuckles along his cheekbone. “Babes,” she said, a small, secretive smile blossoming across her face. “You’re missin’ the most obvious possibility in there, my darling.”

Eggsy frowned. “What?”

“That he loves you, Silly!” she said, shook her head. “I ain’t sayin’ your posh bloke might not just be that kind of a person, but you say you don’t know why he’d want you in his life, and more than likely he loves you and wants to keep you safe and take care of you.” She nodded to Daisy’s ide of the room. “You live with us and share a bedroom with a five year old cause you love her and want to keep her safe from Dean and take care of her, and you can’t imagine why a man you was dating wouldn’t want to let you live with him to protect you and provide for you?”

Eggsy closed his eyes, the weight of realization pressing down on him so hard he wanted to scream. “Fuck,” he spat out and, when he opened his eyes, Michelle was looking at him in concern, no doubt worried by how fast he’d gone pale. “God, Mum, I really messed up, didn’t I?”

She shook her head, leaning in to kiss his forehead. “No, Love, because a person who loves someone else that much will always listen to the two most difficult words to say and let them heal things.”

Eggsy frowned. “Two words?” he asked, thinking of how ‘I love you’ was three words, unless he’d been hit harder round the head than he thought.

She nodded with a small smile. “‘I’m sorry.’”

~

When Eggsy got to the front door of the house numbered on the slip of paper he’d ripped from his sketchbook, almost every bit of him was screaming to run away and avoid the potential heartbreak of Harry having gotten on with his life. 

But the memory of his mum whispering, _He loves you_ urged him into carrying on and actually ringing the doorbell.

Footsteps neared the door and, when it opened, Eggsy’s heart jerked in his chest at the first sight of Harry in weeks. Harry looked surprised to see him, but no less breathless as the same nervousness that Eggsy felt took him. “Eggsy. I- well I have to admit, I didn’t expect to- to see you. I-“ He floundered some, looking around. “Do- would you like to come in?” he asked, and Eggsy nodded, unable to fight the giddiness he felt at seeing Harry all flustered. It was absolutely adorable, and so very Harry.

Eggsy followed Harry inside, and Harry waffled on as they walked. “It’s- it’s a bit smaller than my previous home, but it’s a nice fit after living at Roxanne’s for so long, don’t you think? Of course, you never saw- well never mind,” he said, then, when they reached the living room, he turned on the spot, looking utterly annoyed at himself. “Shit, just say something to shut me up, I beg of you.”

Eggsy saw the spots of red on Harry’s face and took in the defeated slump of his shoulders, and all the things he’d thought to say to Harry, all the things he’d mentally rehearsed on the train ride, all of the words he’d mouthed to himself, all of it disappeared in a rush of overwhelming emotion as he looked up into Harry’s beautiful brown eyes. 

“I love you so much.”

Harry’s eyes widened in utter shock and Eggsy flushed, but couldn’t stop a grin taking over his face. “I- that’s- you- well you-“ Harry growled. “Fuck’s sake, I can’t string a bloody word together-“

Eggsy laughed, shaking his head. “Finally found a way to throw you off, then.”

“Well you rather surprised me,” Harry accused, running a hand through his hair, messing it up without a thought. “I mean shit, Eggsy, I don’t see you or speak to you for weeks and the first words you say to me-“

“Are the truth,” Eggsy said strongly. He stepped into Harry’s space, holding his gaze. “I’ve missed you so much,” he said, voice wavering a bit. “I didn’t understand, I couldn’t understand why you would do so much and ask so little. In my life, that just isn’t how things go, so I had no context. But now I think I understand why you would treat me so well and I feel so foolish for accusing you of just wanting a kept boy.” He winced. “I’m so, so sorry Harry.”

“What changed?” Harry asked cautiously. “What do you think my reasoning was now, and what changed to make you think it?”

Eggsy smiled sadly. “My mom told me about my dad and why she loved him, and I realized, all the things she said made her love my dad… they were the same things that make me love you.” He flushed a bit. “And- and when I realized that I love you, suddenly all the selfless things you did for me made sense.”

Harry looked at him with an intense, searching look as if he could see right through him. “That night, you said I didn’t love you, so there was no reason for me to give so much in return for so little.” Eggsy nodded, guilt painting his face, and Harry took a small breath. “You were wrong, you know.”

Eggsy smiled sadly. “Yeah, I do.”

Harry sighed, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. “I knew when I got involved that you are so- so damaged,” he said slowly. “Your life has hurt you so much and I thought, ‘well that’s alright, I’ll show him I don’t care’, but you never learned anything else. You never saw the things I did for you as they really were. I’m not a man to find a young man to fuck just because I can and felt like it, but you never seemed to understand that you meant so much to me.” He met his eyes. “When you had your rant about my offer to help you, I blamed myself. I knew you were so damaged and I just assumed you would understand that life isn’t really so cold and hard, which was very stupid of me.” He shook his head. “I know nothing of what your life has been like. I know everything you’ve said, but I cannot possibly _know_ that life. I can’t know how much you don’t understand simply because nobody ever cared enough to show you the normal way from the damaged way you’ve always known.”

Eggsy shook his head. “I’m just as bad. My ‘normal’ says you’re too good, too easy to take advantage of, too easy to manipulate. But I never tried to make you understand what my life is like. I know fuck all about your way of living,” he admitted openly. “But even then, I should’ve been able to see that all the things you did, all the shit you offered… it was your way of showing me that you have feelings for me.”

Harry reached out, finally giving up and showing Eggsy every emotion he was hiding behind his mask. When Eggsy slid his hand into Harry’s, Harry wasted no time pulling him into his arms. Eggsy mashed his face into Harry’s chest, arms going around his shoulders and neck quickly, clinging to him. “I’ve missed you so much,” Harry whispered into his hair and Eggsy let out a weak laugh.

“I missed you, too. God, _Harry_.” He pulled back, pushing Harry’s hair back, shaking his head. “I’m so sorry. I’m so goddamn sorry.”

“Shhhhh, it’s alright,” Harry comforted, cupping his cheek, smiling when Eggsy pushed his face into his palm. “I’ve got you. Anything you want, anything you need, I’ve got you,” Harry promised.

Eggsy pulled back, raising an eyebrow. “You sure you wanna make an offer like that, Bruv? Cause I done told my pride to fuck off, I ain’t scared of asking you anything.”

Harry smiled as he leaned in. “ _Anything_ ,” he whispered, just before his and Eggy’s lips connected in a kiss.

~

Eggsy gave Roxy the very last box of Daisy’s things and looked around the room they had shared for more than five years, feeling so strange about seeing it empty. Michelle came to the door and smiled. “All ready to go, Eggsy? Harry’s waiting downstairs,” she said, and Eggsy turned around, putting the room to his back with little ceremony to face his mum.

“Mum,” he said, reaching out to grab her hands. “Mum, are you _sure_ you won’t come with us? You can stay with me until you find a job and your own flat, Rox will help you, I promise, we’ll all take care of everything,” he said, nearly pleading for her to just listen.

She smiled sadly and shook her head. “Nah, I’m good here.” She glanced back into the living room, crossing her arms over her middle. “It’s home, Eggsy.”

“Mum-“ She stopped him before he could say it really wasn’t any sort of a home, and looked into his eyes.

“He’s my husband, Eggsy.” She shook her head. “He’s not all bad, you know?”

Eggsy wanted to shake her and scream that no, he really was all bad, Dean was the worst of the worst, but he knew from a lifetime of experience that she just wasn’t ready. If she hadn’t left him when he beat her son half to death, she wasn’t going to leave him now that both her children were finally going to be safe. Instead, he just nodded, pulling her into a hug. “You call me every single day, alright? And come round the house whenever.”

She chuckled, rolling her eyes. “Which of us is the mum here,” she teased, reaching up to kiss his cheek. “You go on, Babes. Don’t you worry bout me, I’ll be fine.”

Eggsy gave her one more long hug and then did as she said, taking the last box with him as he walked out of that flat for what he very well intended to be the last time.

~

When Eggsy finally came out of the bathroom and fell into bed, he landed with a ‘flump’ on his front, face buried in the covers beside Harry’s ribs. He mumbled a few times and Harry just chuckled, ruffling his hair. “I fear I do not speak muffled grumbles, my dear.”

Eggsy lifted up on his elbows with a huff. “I said, ‘Fuck, I’m tired’,” he repeated, looking up at Harry with heavy, sleepy eyes. “I swear on me life, Dais didn’t have that much shit before we got it here,” he said and Harry chuckled.

Harry set aside his book and turned off the lamp, turning back around to slide down under the covers and get comfy before opening his arms to Eggsy, who wasted no time face planting against his chest. “Did she have trouble going to bed?” he asked softly and Eggsy shook his head, still wallowing around, trying to properly wrap around Harry like an octopus.

“Nah, she’s used to sleeping through anything and conkin’ out anywhere.” Eggsy finally settled, leg between Harry’s, head tucked under his chin.

“You know,” Harry teased. “You’d think after so long in such a narrow bed, you would enjoy spreading out some. I’m fairly certain your half of the bed is entirely empty by now.”

Eggsy shook his head. “Having my own human teddy is nicer.” He pressed a dry kiss to Harry’s bare chest. “Besides, you like it,” he teased and Harry chuckled, sliding his hand up the back of Eggsy’s (his) thin tee shirt.

“I like just about anything having to do with you, if you haven’t noticed by now,” Harry murmured and Eggsy gave a pleased hum.

“Course you do, cause you love me,” he said, bringing a smile to Harry’s face.

“That I do, Eggsy, that I do.”


End file.
